Everything's Alright
by DatHeetJoella
Summary: 'Now, if you'll allow me to introduce us. I'm Dr. Ryugazaki Rei and this is my partner Dr. Hazuki Nagisa. We are from Sigmund Corp., an organization that makes our client's lifelong wish come true, so that they can die without having any regrets about their lives.' - Free! To The Moon AU - MakoHaru, ReiGisa, background SouRin
1. Chapter 1

It was already dark outside when Hazuki Nagisa and Ryugazaki Rei were heading towards their next patient. Nagisa was driving and Rei was sitting in the passenger's seat, staring out the window.

''Urgh,'' Nagisa huffed, ''I hate being on nightshift.''

''I know. I'm not very fond of nightshifts, either, but complaining about it will not change our situation, Nagisa-kun.'' Rei said and he pushed the red frame of his glasses further up the bridge of his nose.

''Hey, Rei-chan, what do you think our next patient will be like?'' Nagisa wondered, completely ignoring his partner's previous statement. ''What would their unaccomplished dream be?''

''Nagisa-kun, you ask me this every single time we have another patient assigned to us. I do not know. We will have to wait and see, we will know it when we get there.''

Nagisa turned his head towards Rei, his eyes leaving the road in front of them. ''Ehh, Rei-chan, you're no fun at all!'' He whined.

''This has nothing to do with me being fun, just focus on the job ahead of us! Speaking of which, I believe the place should be around here somewhere, so we could arrive at any mo- NAGISA-KUN WATCH THE ROAD! WATCH OUT!''

As soon as Rei started yelling, Nagisa jerked his head to look where he was going, not realising he had been swaying. A squirrel was standing in the middle of the lane, frozen in fear as it saw a car coming closer. When Nagisa noticed the squirrel, it was already too late to hit the brakes and he made a sharp turn to right. Rei was screaming really loudly and before they knew what was going on the car was suddenly halted. The impact caused them to jerk forward, quickly inflating airbags hitting their chests and preventing them from flying through the windshield.

Rei slowly opened his eyes. The first thing he saw was the shattered windshield in front of him. Luckily, all the pieces of broken glass were still in their rightful place, instead of raining down on them.

Rei looked over to Nagisa. ''Nagisa-kun? Nagisa-kun, are you alright?''

Nagisa faced Rei as the realisation of what had just happened dawned upon him. ''Oh my god! Are you okay, Rei-chan?''

''I am okay. What about you?''

''Yeah, I'm fine. Only my neck hurts a little.'' Nagisa responded as he rubbed at the sore muscles of his neck.

''The impact of the crash probably caused that. If it doesn't go away within a few days I would advice you to go see a doctor.''

''Yeah, yeah.'' Nagisa waved him off as he opened the car door and stepped outside, slamming the door shut a little harder than necessary.

Rei followed suit, and as soon as he was out of the car, he remembered what was going on. ''Nagisa-kun, what happened? Why did you suddenly turn?''

''There was a squirrel on the road and I tried to evade it.''

Rei walked to the road they had just left. He saw the remains of what he presumed used to be a squirrel splattered across the asphalt.

''You ran over it any way.'' He declared as he went back to their crashed car.

''Ahw, poor squirrel!''

''Forget about the squirrel! Look at the car! This is a company car! How are we going to tell our boss that the car broke because it collided with a tree? How are we going to explain it?''

''Rei-chan, calm down. Everything's fine! I'll just tell him I hit the tree because I was saving a squirrel!''

''YOU KILLED IT EITHER WAY!''

''Well, we don't have to tell him every little detail!'' Nagisa tried to flash Rei an innocent smile, but the other wasn't buying it.

''What if we don't get a replacement? What if they don't trust us with company vehicles anymore? What if they fire us?''

''Relax, Rei-chan! At least no one got hurt.''

''Except for the squirrel.''

''Except for the squirrel.'' Nagisa affirmed.

''Well, your unfortunate collision has one positive side.''

''And that is?''

''We've arrived at our destination. I believe our patient's house is on top of this hill.''

''Great! So after this lovely car crash during our nightshift we get to walk up this entire hill?'' Nagisa said sarcasticly.

''Nagisa-kun, I'm not any happier about this than you are, but this is our job! We have to execute everything perfectly, nightshift or not. Every single patient deserves the best and we deliver nothing but the best!''

''Right, right.''

''Well, if you can gather our equipment then we can get going.''

Nagisa grabbed the equipment from the backseat and he locked the car. He followed Rei, who was leading the way up the hill.

''This is going to be a long night.'' Nagisa mumbled.

They walked through the trees, following the little sand path. They walked up the small stairs until an unidentified object blocked their way.

''What's that?'' Nagisa pointed at the object.

''I don't know, maybe it's their way of preventing intruders from entering private grounds.''

''Like a security system?''

''Well, yes, I suppose.''

''Hmm,'' Nagisa looked around, ''Ah!'' He exclaimed as his picked up a stick. ''We can try poking it with this stick!''

''Wait, Nagisa-kun, I don't think that's a good idea what if we-''

He was interrupted by a plopping sound and the object started to deflate.

''-break it,'' He finished.

''Whatever,'' Nagisa said as he threw the stick away and stepped over the deflated object.

Rei wanted to give Nagisa a lecture on why he should not break other people's belongings, but Nagisa had already continued their little journey.

They walked until the stood in front of a large house near a cliff. The sound of a piano could be heard from outside. Nagisa put the equipment down.

''This should be it.'' Rei said as he looked up.

''Wow,'' Nagisa voiced in amazement, ''This place is pretty neat!''

Rei cleared his throat and knocked twice.

The sound of the piano stopped and muffled voices could be heard. If Rei listened attentively, he could he the voice of a small boy, yelling something along the lines of ''Mom, they're here!''.

The door flew open and Nagisa jumped inside. ''Don't forget the equipment, Rei-chan!''

''I wasn't going to forget!'' Rei yelped offendedly.

Inside the house a woman awaited them. She had long, red hair that matched her eyes. She was fairly short, a few centimeters shorter than Nagisa. A kind smile that was a bit apologetic was painted on her face.

''Thank you for being able to come on such a short notice. My name is Gou.''

''You are welcome, Gou-san. Now, if you'll allow me to introduce us. I'm Dr. Ryugazaki Rei and this is my partner Dr. Hazuki Nagisa. We are from Sigmund Corp., an organization that makes our client's lifelong wish come true, so that they can die without having any regrets about their lives.'' Rei introduced them as he did every single time.

Gou looked as if she didn't understand why Rei gave such an extensive introduction, since she already knew who they worked for and what their job was, considering she was the one who had hired them, but she didn't say anything about it.

''Nice to meet you both.''

''Are you the patient's daughter?'' Rei asked.

''No, no, I simply take care of him. He was actually a friend of my uncle, and that's how I got this job. It's pretty much a never ending job, so Makoto lets us live here. With us I mean, my two sons, Aiichiro and Momotaro and myself.''

''I'm assuming 'Makoto' is our patient?''

''Wait, I thought you said 'he'?''

''I did. Makoto's male.''

Nagisa beamed at this. ''Rei-chan, he's got a girly name just like us!''

Both Rei and Gou chose to ignore Nagisa's comment.

''Makoto's upstairs right now with his medical doctor,'' Gou said as she walked towards the stairs, leading the way.

When they got upstairs, the music started again. Nagisa and Rei assumed that the aforemention children were playing the piano.

They entered the bedroom. Gou was standing in the middle of the room. Against the wall stood a large bed. An old man was lying in the center of the bed. His hair had turned grey, his face was a bit wrinkled and his body was fairly big. He looked like he had been a handsome and strong man when he was younger.

Another man was kneeling at the bedside. Probably the doctor Gou had told them about.

Gou gestured towards the man that was lying in the bed. ''This is Tachibana Makoto, your patient.'' She introduced him.

''Nice to meet you, Mako-chan!'' Nagisa said to Makoto, but the sick man was unconscious.

''Nagisa-kun, please speak to our patient with a little more respect.'' Rei scolded.

Gou chuckled. ''I'm sure he wouldn't have minded.''

''Gou-san, can we set our equipment up somewhere?''

''Oh, of course! Here.'' She pointed at a table with a chair behind it.

Rei put down the equipment on the table. He sat down in the chair and started up the program. Nagisa walked over to the doctor.

''How is he doing?'' He asked.

The doctor shook his head. ''Not so well. I think he's got about a day or two left, at most.''

''Oh, that's plenty of time!'' Nagisa took a few steps in Gou's direction.

''So, what's our big guy's big wish?''

''The moon.''

''What? The moon?''

''The moon,'' She repeated, ''He wants to go to the moon.''

Rei and Nagisa looked at each other confused.

''So, can you do it?''

''It depends.'' ''Of course!'' They said at the same time.

''Which one is it?''

''Of course!'' Nagisa exclaimed again.

''Why don't you tell us a little bit more about Tachibana-san?''

''Uh, I don't really know much. As I mentioned before, I got this job thanks to my uncle. My uncle actually knew him better. According to my uncle, he was a very kind man. He used to work as a firefighter. Two years ago his husband passed away and that's when I started working here. I don't know him that well, since in the two years that I've worked here he barely spoke. He mostly sat behind the piano, playing the same tune over and over again. After he got sicker, he would just lie in his bed all day, just staring off into empty space. I believe that all of that was due to the death of his husband. My uncle told me that they were like soulmates, to the point where they could read each other's minds, and Makoto couldn't get used to life without his husband. His death was so traumatic to Makoto, almost as if he had lost himself that day. That's why I never really got to know him. Therefore, I don't know why he wants to go to the moon.'' Gou explained.

''Ahw, that's so sad!'' Nagisa said, his eyes brimming with tears, ''Poor Mako-chan!''

Nagisa turned to their patient. ''Don't worry, Mako-chan, we'll definitely get you to the moon!''

Rei cleared his throat. ''And how are we supposed to do that without any clue on why he wants to go there? Without a clear motive or reason I'm not sure we can successfully pull this off.''

''I'm not sure if it will help but.. I suppose you could take a look around the house and see if you can gather more information. Makoto signed for you, so I think he wouldn't mind,'' Gou offered.

''Okay!'' Nagisa strolled over to Rei. ''So, is detective Rei-chan on the case?''

''Actually, Nagisa-kun, I would prefer to stay here to ready the equipment. You can take a look around if you want, but remember that you are at work right now. Your antics or schemes would be highly inappropriate and not appreciated right now, so please refrain from that kind of behaviour. You are a professional.''

''Right, I get it!'' Nagisa huffed as he walked away from Rei.

''My children can show you around. They're probably downstairs at the piano.''

''Wait!'' The doctor called Nagisa back.

''What?''

''I got something for you.'' The doctor handed him something.

''What's this?''

''It's a remote heart monitor. It'll keep you updated on Tachibana-san's status.''

''Awesome, thanks!'' Nagisa put the monitor away and he walked downstairs.

Downstairs at the piano Nagisa found two children. One of the boys had straight, silver hair and big, light blue eyes, the other boy had orange hair with slight waves and smaller yellow eyes.

''Are you Ai-chan and Momo-chan?''

The boy with the orange hair turned to him with a wide grin. ''Yep! Who are you?''

''I'm Nagisa. Your mom told me you could show me around the house.''

''Of course we can!''

''Momo-kun, is that really a good idea? It's Tachibana-san's house.'' The other boy, Aiichiro, spoke.

''It's fine, Ai! Mom told Nagisacchi that he could.''

''O-Okay.'' Aiichiro stuttered shyly.

''Great!'' Nagisa said as the children stood up. ''So, where do we start?''

''Oh! I know! There's this weird room in the basement!'' Momotaro beamed.

''I don't like that room..'' Aiichiro said anxiously.

''Weird room?''

''It's locked though, so we would need the keys. I believe the old man kept the keys in a book in the study.''

''Alright, let's find the keys, then. Where's the study?''

''I'll show you!'' Momotaro trotted towards a door, Aiichiro following closely.

The little boy opened the door and led them inside.

''This is it! The keys are hidden in the thickest book on the upper shelf!''

Nagisa walked towards the bookshelf, searching for the thickest book.

''Ha! Found it!'' He exclaimed. He opened the book and found a key inside. ''Yay, I got it!''

He went back to the kids. ''So, the basement's next, right?''

''Yup! We can open the weird room now!''

''Are you sure this is a good idea? The room is locked for a reason.'' Aiichiro objected.

''It's okay, Ai-chan! I'll just take a look inside, that's it.''

Aiichiro still wasn't convinced, but he wouldn't dare to forbid this stranger from entering. This adult stranger, that is.

''Up to the basement!'' Momotaro yelped as he raised his fist in the air.

Walking down the stairs was sort of a challenge, since it was very dark.

When they were standing in the basement, Momotaro spoke. ''Here we are! Now we only need to turn on the lights.''

Nagisa shuffled around until he found the switch. ''Got it!'' He laughed as the lights flickered on.

''There's the weird room.'' Momotaro pointed at the door. ''I'm not going in! That room creeps me out!''

''Me neither!'' Aiichiro muttered.

Nagisa shrugged and got the key ready, unlocking the door.

He entered the room. The only light coming from the rest of the basement, so he couldn't see the entire room, but what he could see left him speechless. He honestly didn't know what he was expecting when the children had mentioned a weird room, but it wasn't this.

He looked around for any source of light and flipped another switch. The room lit up and revealed it's secrets.

If you would take a good look around it would seem like a normal storage room, a few boxes here and there, save for the fact that the room was filled with paper cranes. They were everywhere. Everywhere. Nagisa wasn't that good in math, but he guessed that there had to be at least one hundred.

His jaw had dropped and he scanned the rest of the room. Something else caught his eye. On top of one of the boxes sat a plush dolphin. The dolphin was blue with white. It seemed old, but it looked like it had been taken care of with utmost concern and treated with love.

Nagisa's interest was piqued and he decided to take the plush toy with him. It looked like it might be important.

Nagisa switched the light off and returned to Aiichiro and Momotaro.

''Did you see it?''

''What do you know about all those paper cranes?''

''Nothing!'' Aiichiro yelled.

''We were told not to go in there. But there's more of them actually!''

''Really? Where?''

''Inside the abandoned lighthouse! It's just beneath the cliff. Do you want to go there? I got the keys!''

''Alright! Let's go to the lighthouse!''


	2. Chapter 2

The three of them left the basement and walked toward the front door. Momotaro opened the door and leapt outside.

''Come on! I'll show you the lighthouse!'' He yelled as he dashed off.

Nagisa, being the man child he is, ran after the little boy, his white lab coat swaying behind him.

Aiichiro slowly closed the door, not wanting it to make a lot of sound. He turned around and saw that he was left alone. The darkness kind of scared him and he ran as hard as his tiny legs could carry him in the direction he thought his brother had went, crying ''Wait for me!''.

Momotaro led them to the cliff. The cliff looked out over a lighthouse that looked abandoned. The only thing that was on the cliff was a wooden bench.

''There it is!''

It wasn't as if Nagisa hadn't noticed it yet, because there was no way someone could overlook something the size of a lighthouse, let alone an actual lighthouse. Yet, for once he chose not to comment.

''Awesome! But how do we get there?''

''Oh! We need to go down the hill!'' Momotaro answered.

Then why didn't we go down in the first place, Nagisa thought. He tried not to show his annoyance, he still needed these children's help after all.

''Then, can you take me there?''

''Sure!''

Momotaro turned to run again, but Aiichiro grabbed his wrist.

''Momo-kun, can't we walk there instead?''

''Huh? Oh, okay.'' Aiichiro smiled gratefully as he let go of his brother's wrist.

Momotaro, Aiichiro and Nagisa started walking south at a steady pace. They were going down the way Nagisa and Rei had come from earlier. Suddenly Aiichiro gasped.

''Oh no!''

Nagisa stared at the ground. In front of their feet lay the deflated still unidentified object Nagisa had poked with the stick.

''My beach ball! Somebody broke it!'' Aiichiro said.

''..Oh.''

Nagisa saw that the boy was on the verge of tears. Not having the time to deal with a crying child right now, Nagisa tried to soothe him.

''Hey, hey, it's okay! Rei-chan will buy you a new one!''

''Who is 'Rei-chan'?''

''He's my partner, Dr. Ryugazaki Rei! He'll definitely buy you a new one!''

Aiichiro looked up at Nagisa. ''Really?''

''Uh.. Yeah! I promise!''

The little boy's mood visibly lightened at Nagisa's unrightful promise.

''So, can we keep going now?''

''O-Of course!'' Aiichiro said as he wiped at the corners of his eyes with his fist.

They continued walking until they reached the company's car, still smashed against the tree.

''It's smoking!''

''Who's the dummy that crashed that car?''

''Oh, uh, it was Rei-chan! Yeah, it was Rei-chan.'' Nagisa put the blame on Rei and he quickly walked away from the car, as if the broken vehicle would reveal that it was actually his doing.

They walked and walked until they finally reached the lighthouse.

They went to the door of the lighthouse, when Nagisa saw something else. There was a stone that was sticking out of the soil. A bouquet of plucked flowers lay before it.

''Wait, what's that over there?'' He asked.

Nagisa walked over to the stone. It read:

''In loving memory of Tachibana Haruka''

''Tachibana Haruka,'' Nagisa spoke, ''Is that Mako-chan's husband?''

''Mako-chan?'' The children questioned.

''Tachibana-san, the old man. Was 'Haruka' his husband?''

''Dunno.''

''I don't know either,'' Aiichiro said, ''But before Tachibana-san got sick, he came here every day, placing wild flowers at that stone. Now Mommy does it every day. I think Tachibana-san asked her to.''

''Ahw,'' Nagisa began, ''Then he must've been his husband. His husband had a girly name, too!''

Momotaro was getting impatient. ''Can we go inside now?''

Nagisa remembered that he came here to do something. ''Right, let's go!''

They entered the lighthouse. There were a few flights of stairs too many for Nagisa's liking. He mumbled, ''I don't get paid enough for this.''

When they reached the top of the stairs, the first thing Nagisa saw that the floor was littered in paper cranes.

''This is it!'' Momotaro made a presenting motion with his arms.

Nagisa walked towards the middle of the room, carefull not to step on any of the origami cranes. He looked at the big lamp.

''Hmm, looks like this thing stopped functioning a while ago.''

There was one paper crane that stood out from the others. It was resting upon a small, wooden box and unlike all the other cranes, that were colourless, this one was a bright blue and green.

Nagisa picked it up to take a closer look at it.

''Hey! That one wasn't here when I came here last week!'' Momotaro exclaimed.

''Tachibana-san must have come here before he fell ill again and became bedridden.''

''Two colours..'' Nagisa muttered.

They were startled by a sudden ringing sound, Nagisa's phone went off.

''That's probably Rei-chan.'' Nagisa guessed as he picked up. ''I knew it!''

''Yes, Rei-chan. Yeah, yeah we're coming back! I'll be right there, Bye!'' He hung up.

''Blah, blah, blah!'' Nagisa said to his phone, causing Momotaro to burst out into giggles.

''Shall we head back, then?'' Aiichiro proposed.

''Yeah, let's head back!'' Nagisa agreed.

* * *

Back at the house, Nagisa went upstairs as quickly as he could, while Aiichiro and Momotaro went back to playing the piano.

He entered Makoto's bedroom. He saw that a green helmet was placed over the old man's head.

''What in the heavens were you doing, Nagisa-kun?''

''I was taking a look around the house, just like I said I would.''

''What took you so long?''

''I don't know, I might've gotten a bit distracted along the way.''

Rei sighed. ''Your helmet's on the couch. Put it on, we're going in.'' Rei sat back down in the chair.

Gou turned to Nagisa. ''By the way, I'm curious...'' She started, ''How does it work? Do you just write him another life like a novel?''

''What? No!'' Nagisa laughed, ''I'm not a writer or anything! We can't just write out an entire life manually. There are way too many dimensions.''

''Then.. how do you do it?''

''It's mainly the machine that does the.. 'doing','' Rei explained, ''In a nutshell, our job is to travel through his memories to as early as possible. And when we do, we would then transfer his registered desire of going to the moon..''

''..to the reconstruction of the world and himself at that early state!'' Nagisa finished his partner's sentence. ''And with the help of a wiki of data and his own, the machine would then simulate a rerun.''

''Except this time, he'll have the motivation of his registered desire with him all his life,'' Rei concluded.

Gou frowned. ''So you'd be depending on him fulfilling his own wish by simply having the desire to? How could that be? Everyone has ambitions for things, but most won't accomplish them.''

''That's because in the real world, ambitions fluctuate... and fade,'' Rei said. ''People start things with a passion, but eventually they lose that initial drive and slow down. But imagine if you were locked onto that initial push through your entire life, never wavering. It is actually more powerfull than it seems.''

''That being said, no ambition's gonna help a dead man, so we better get going.''

''Oh, of course! Sorry,'' Gou apologised.

''Nah, it's okay!'' Nagisa said as he strolled toward the couch and sat down.

Rei and Nagisa put on their helmets.

''Alright, here we go!''

Rei pushed the button. Their helmets activated and they waited until the memory was loaded.

* * *

Vision slowly returned to them as they arrived in the memory. They were standing in Makoto's bedroom, but nobody was here, except for Rei and Nagisa.

''This should be the last accessible memory,'' Rei declared. ''Disable speech for all except Tachibana-san,'' He commanded Nagisa.

''Done, and can you call him Makoto? It feels less formal.''

''May I remind you that this is, in fact, a formal occasion. But if you prefer it, I'll call him Makoto-san from now on.''

''Yay! Let's go find him,'' Nagisa said as they left the room and went downstairs.

There wasn't anyone downstairs either, so they walked outside the door.

Nagisa remembered what the children had told him.

''Oh, I know! He might be at the lighthouse!''

''The lighthouse?'' Rei questioned.

''Yeah! We should be able to see it from the cliff! Come on, I'll show you!'' Nagisa exclaimed and he led Rei the way just as Momotaro had led him earlier.

When they reached the cliff, they saw Makoto sitting on the bench and Gou standing behind him.

''Makoto-san?'' Rei called.

Makoto stood up at the sound of his name. He took a step aside, facing Rei and Nagisa. Nagisa's suspicions had been confirmed. Even though he was old, Makoto was still taller and broader than the two of them.

''What a pleasant surprise,'' He said, ''We don't get many visitors around here.'' Makoto flashed them a smile that didn't quite reach his eyes.

''My name is Dr. Ryugazaki Rei and this is Dr. Hazuki Nagisa. Are you familiar with the Sigmund Agency of Life Generation?''

''Are you two from they agency? What a coincidence, I've just been thinking of calling you. Gou-chan, can you please get us some tea?''

The woman didn't respond.

''... Gou-chan?''

''It's not a coincidence, in fact, you have already called us.''

As Rei spoke those words, the woman slowly faded away.

Gou's vanishing had startled Makoto and he took a few steps back.

''We are here to fulfill our contract from the relative future.''

Makoto stepped back a little more. ''You... You are here to take me to the moon, right?''

''Yes, Makoto-san,'' Rei said.

Makoto turned around. ''Well... I suppose I had a good run,'' He sighed, looking at the lighthouse. ''So, can you do it?'' He turned back to them. ''Can you take me to the moon, I mean?''

''We cannot, but you might be able to.''

''Why do you want to go there anyway?'' Nagisa asked.

''I don't know.''

Nagisa and Rei shared some confused looks.

Rei took a step toward Makoto. ''It's okay, you can tell us. It's essential for helping us to get you to go to the moon.''

''Do you want the fame? The money? You have to have at least some type of motive,'' Nagisa pried.

''I'm sorry, but I really don't know. I just... do.''

Rei walked closer to Makoto. ''Nevertheless, Makoto-san, this is what we are going to do. We need to get to your childhood, but it is too distant to do so in one memory hop. Thus, we need to traverse through your memories with gradual backward leaps.''

''Which you have given us permission to do in the relative future,'' Nagisa added.

''Once we lay down the waypoints in your childhood memories for direct access, we will return here. That's when you will need to help us influence your childhood self to become an astronaut. The point is, you will need to have more to say than just 'I don't know'.''

''I'll help. As long as you can take me to the moon, I'll cooperate in any way I can,'' Makoto said.

''Good,'' Rei uttered, ''Now, in order to leap a memory we need an item that is of importance to you. Do you have a memento of some sort to get us started?''

Makoto contemplated this before walking back to the bench. He picked something up and stared at it for a second before hesistantly handing it to Rei.

''This will do,'' Rei confirmed.

Nagisa peeked into Rei's hand and took a sharp breath. Inside of Rei's had rested the blue and green paper crane, the one Nagisa had found in the abandoned lighthouse earlier.

''Well, shall we?'' Rei asked Nagisa.

''Sure, just prepare it first.''

Rei nodded and he prepared the memento. When he had successfully prepared it, he activated it. It slowly got dark before their eyes as they leapt to another memory.

* * *

Rei and Nagisa were standing in the living room of the house. Makoto was sitting behind the piano, playing a song. On top of the piano rested the stuffed dolphin. The floor was covered in paper cranes, the multicoloured paper crane lying among the others.

''Turn off visibility and interactivity; it would be troublesome to be noticed,'' Rei said.

''Yeah, yeah, I get it.'' Nagisa turned them off.

He looked around. ''I forgot to ask him about all these cranes.''

Rei didn't say anything in response. Instead, he listened attentively to the tune Makoto was playing. ''Does this song sound familiar to you, Nagisa-kun?''

''Hmm.. Ah! It does!'' Nagisa exclaimed, trying to remember where he had heard it before, ''I think it's the same song Ai-chan and Momo-chan were playing!''

''Gou-san's children?''

''Yeah!''

''Perhaps Makoto-san taught them how to play.'' Rei pushed his glasses up his nose, ''Either way, we do not have the time to stand around and chat. We need to find a memento to hop to an earlier memory. First we need to find five memory links.''

Rei walked over to a clock that hung on the wall. He noticed that the clock was moving, yet it didn't make a ticking sound. ''Hmm, the clock ticks silently,'' He noted. His words established the silent clock as a memory link.

Nagisa found a red umbrella that was lying in the corner of the room. He touched it briefly. It shook a little underneath Nagisa's fingertips. ''I found the memento, Rei-chan! We just need four more links!''

''Alright, let's continue searching upstairs.''

''Okay.''

They entered Makoto's room once they got upstairs. A plate of mackerel was lying on the nightstand. Rei and Nagisa walked over to it.

''Fish?'' Nagisa questioned.

''More specifically, mackerel.''

''Who the hell keeps mackerel in their bedroom?''

''I don't know. Maybe there is a good reason there's mackerel here.''

''Like what?''

''Perhaps it was his meal. Gou-san could've made it for him, but he didn't have an appetite.''

Nagisa picked the plate up and it established a memory link.

''Then why is it a link?''

''I don't know, but there has to be more behind it than just dinner, if it is a memory link.''

''That's so weird. How does a fish have any sentimental value?''

''I guess we will find out soon enough. Now, mackerel aside, let's continue looking for memory links.''

A backpack that was sitting on the floor beside the bed turned out to be the third link.

''I wonder what kind of importance this backpack holds,'' Nagisa said.

''We will just have to wait and see.''

Nagisa huffed. He really loved his job. Learning about other people's lives always excited him. He was curious, and he always wondered what kind of place the links and mementos had in their patient's heart.

Rei, on the other hand, was a lot more level-headed. Rei loved his job, sure, but it didn't excite him like it excited Nagisa. He found learning more about the lives of different kinds of people fascinating and interesting, but he wasn't as curious or enthusiastic as his partner.

Rei walked over to the table - the one on which their equipment was placed in the 'real' world - and picked up the book that was lying on the surface. He took a closer look at it.

''The Little Mermaid by Hans Christan Andersen,'' He read out loud.

The book was another memory link.

Meanwhile Nagisa had trotted out of the room and into a little corridor. He saw Makoto standing there, next to a pot of flowers. He was staring at a painting that was hanging on the wall.

Nagisa wanted to start talking to him, but he was stopped by a hand on his shoulder. He looked behind him and saw Rei shaking his head.

''Don't. If we have to explain our presence to him at every memory, I'd go insane before the night's over.''

''You're right, sorry.''

Rei stepped forward and reached out to touch the painting Makoto was intently staring at, but nothing happened.

''That's weird,'' Nagisa said, ''I expected that to be the fifth link.''

He put his hand on the pot and leaned against it. The pot of flowers turned out to be the last memory link.

''Woah. I didn't expect that.''

''We better hurry. I believe you said the red umbrella downstairs was the memento?''

''Yes! Let's go!''

They walked downstairs. When they reached the umbrella, Nagisa loaded it with the gathered memory links and he prepared it.

Rei and Nagisa travelled with the umbrella to another memory.

* * *

They arrived in the memory and Rei looked around.

They were standing in front of the lighthouse and it was raining. Luckily, since this was a memory, they didn't get wet.

Makoto was kneeling in front of the gravestone, holding the red umbrella as tears seeped out of his eyes, tracing lines on his wrinkled cheeks. Beside him lay the stuffed dolphin, the umbrella shielding it from the rain.

''Seems like these memory hops only span a short period of time. We need to find a leaping memento, or else this is going to take forever.''

''Yeah, let's look for memory links.''

Nagisa and Rei walked over to Makoto. The plush dolphin was the first memory link. The stone that read: ''In loving memory of Tachibana Haruka'' was the second.

When Nagisa entered the lighthouse, Makoto started talking.

''It's finished, Haru. I'll be able to watch over him everyday, just like you are. He won't be alone anymore. I stayed true to your wish, Haru, even if I don't understand why. I'm sure Hikaru is grateful to you, too. But when I'm gone, who's going to watch over us?''

Rei activated visibility and interactivity. He walked over to Makoto.

The old man looked up as he heard Rei's footsteps on the wet grass.

''Who.. Who are you?'' He asked.

''My name is Rei. I was just passing by,'' Rei said, his voice a calm and kind noise. ''Was he your husband?''

''Yes, Haru... His name was Haruka.''

''That's a special name.''

''It didn't need to happen.''

''Excuse me?''

''He.. He didn't need to do it. But.. it's what he wanted. I know this is what made him happy. So it makes me happy, even if it hurts.''


	3. Chapter 3

Rei knew there was nothing he could say or do to comfort Makoto. First of all because this was a memory, and he had not been here at the moment of occurrence. But even if he had been here, there was nothing he could think of that could possibly be of comfort to an old man who had lost the love of his life.

Makoto smiled painfully as he continued talking to his deceased husband, droplets of his tears falling on top of the flowers Rei had not yet noticed.

Rei decided that this was a moment solely for Makoto and his grieving. The sight was so sad that he was actually a little hurt, which was odd, since normally he stayed professional and he wouldn't let anything inside of him. He was not one to let business affairs affect him, and he would like to keep it that way. So he turned around and walked away, going inside the lighthouse to join Nagisa again.

Once he reached the top, he saw Nagisa standing there with his arms crossed, his foot impatiently tapping the floor.

''Rei-chan, where were you? What the hell took you so long?''

''I'm sorry, Nagisa-kun, I-''

''Oh my god, Rei-chan, don't tell me you got lost inside a fucking lighthouse!''

''I assure you that I did not!'' Rei exclaimed offendedly.

''Well, whatever. Since you took so long, I gathered the remaining memory links myself! Have fun on your own, Rei-chan!'' Nagisa walked to the stuffed dolphin, that was now lying on the floor.

''Bye! Bye!'' And he was gone.

''I should ask the agency to switch partners,'' Rei sighed as he pinched the bridge of his nose.

Taking a look around the room, a memory-Makoto appeared. He wasn't doing anything, just sitting there and looking around himself, a sad expression on his face.

Rei decided that he had seen enough. He strolled to the plushy and followed Nagisa to another memory.

* * *

Rei opened his eyes and saw an unfamiliar room. A big bed stood into the middle of the room. Scattered across the floor were paper cranes, all white. A piano stood near one of the walls near the door.

Makoto was sitting on the edge of the bed, appearing a little younger than he had in the memories they'd previously visited, holding the hands of the man that was lying inside the bed. The other man - Rei assumed it was Haruka, Makoto's husband - seemed to be around Makoto's age, his build smaller than his husband's, his hair a darker grey than Makoto's. He was staring at his husband intently, his eyes a bright, deep blue. They reminded Rei of the ocean, beautiful and mysterious, holding a lot of secrets not known to mankind. They were breathtaking, even if they were a mere memory.

Beside them on the bed lay the plush dolphin and a book.

''It's okay, Haru. After we pay for your operation, we'll have just enough left for it, so you don't have to worry!''

''Makoto.''

''What is it, Haru?''

''Don't lie. You're not good at it.''

''I'm not lying, Haru. I-''

''Stop it, Makoto. I don't like it when you lie to me,'' Haruka continued, ''Look, I know how it's like. I calculated our finances.''

''Haru,'' Makoto sighed, ''You're right. We can't afford everything right now. I'm sorry for lying to you, but I promise everything will work out. I'll do everything I can to make it work. We'll be able to finish it and pay for your medical bills. Leave it to me and don't worry about it!''

''Makoto,'' Haruka interrupted, ''I want you to stay with me. I won't allow you to carry everything on your shoulders. I'm fine the way things are.''

''But-''

''When the papers for my treatments get here, I won't sign them. Do whatever you want with our money, but if you want to grant my wish, use it to finish building the house. And then, for everyday that you live there, I want you to watch over him, take care of him, just like you always have of me.''

Makoto leaned forward and gathered the other in his arms, embracing him gently. ''Okay, Haru. If this is what you want.''

''Makoto?''

''Hmm?'' Makoto leaned back a little to look at Haruka's face.

Haruka reached under the duvet and handed his husband something. ''I made this for you.''

''You made this for me? Thank you, Haru! It's beautiful!'' Makoto said as he studied the blue and green paper crane that he was gently holding. ''Blue and green, our favourite colours!''

''I like green. Makoto's eyes are green.''

Makoto chuckled, ''And blue is the colour of Haru-chan's eyes. That's why it's my favourite colour. It reminds me of Haru-chan.''

Haruka frowned. ''Don't call me '-chan', Makoto.''

''Sorry,'' Makoto laughed, ''Haru, I have something for you as well.''

''What is it?''

''I wrote a song, for you.''

Haruka didn't say anything, he just continued to stare at his husband's face. Makoto nodded.

''Would you like to hear it?''

''Yes.''

''Okay,'' Makoto said as he placed a kiss on top of his husband's grey locks. He got up from the bed and made his way to the piano.

''You didn't have to bring the piano up here for this. It's heavy! And besides, I can hear you just fine when you leave the door open.''

''It's okay. I don't mind moving it up here for you.'' Makoto smiled as he sat down on the seat. He laid his hands on top of the keys. ''It's called 'For Haru'.''

''How cliché,'' Haruka responded, amusement lacing his voice.

''I knew you'd say that.''

Makoto breathed deeply and he started to play.

''Romantic, isn't it?''

''Aargh,'' Rei yelped, ''Nagisa-kun, where did you come from?''

''I've been here the whole time, Rei-chan. Didn't you notice me? How rude.''

Rei decided to ignore Nagisa's comments. ''Earlier I heard Makoto-san talk about this 'Hikaru', and now they keep talking about 'him'. Who is this person, and if he's so important, shouldn't we have seen him in Makoto-san's later memories?''

''I don't know. Maybe he didn't keep his promise to Haru-chan after all.''

''Unless...''

''Unless, what?''

''No, nevermind.''

''Anyway, I already gathered the links. Are you coming or do you want to look around a little more?''

''Let's just go, we don't have any time to waste.''

''Alright then,'' Nagisa yelled as they started to fade.

* * *

They reappeared on the cliff. The bench wasn't there yet and a fence was placed to keep people away from here. Rei and Nagisa climbed over it and walked downwards, looking for Makoto.

They saw that the house that their client nowadays lives in was still under construction. Only the framework was there yet.

''Look what we have here.''

''I bet they saw this cliff, and thought it was not dangerous enough without any people living on it.''

''Very funny.''

They walked towards what was going to be the front of the house. Makoto was sitting in the grass, staring at the ground. Another man walked towards him. His hair was red like wine, even though he appeared to be around Makoto's age.

''Sou called and said I should come,'' He said. He sat down next to Makoto. ''I brought you some mackerel. It's his favourite, right?''

Makoto didn't look up when the mackerel was put on the ground between them. He didn't show any sign that indicated that he had as much as heard the other male.

The man sighed. ''I heard about Haru. Will he be okay?''

''His illness was just diagnosed in its late stage. Fortunately, it's treatable. But the medical bills...'' Makoto raised his head and turned to look at the other. ''We can't afford to finish building this house, Rin. We can barely afford to pay for his treatment with our savings. Of course I'm relieved that his disease is treatable, but... He won't be okay. You don't know how much this place means to him. It'll break his heart if we stop building this house.''

''I'd help you out, man, but Sou and I have been barely getting by since the market crashed.''

''I understand.''

''So, what are you guys going to do now? Are you going to tell him that you can't afford it?''

''I'm going to tell him that it'll be okay, that we can make it.''

''Why are you going to lie to him? Just tell him that you can't make it.''

''I can't do that, Rin. And I'm not planning on lying to him either. I'm going to pull this off, I have to pull this off. I have to figure something out. I'll start working again. I'll take as many jobs as I can. I'll do everything within my might.''

''Look, Makoto, I understand that you want to do this for Haru, but you can't just start working again. I know you're a hard worker, but can't you see the obvious? You're old. You're not as strong as you used to be. You don't have to sacrifice yourself for this. Just tell Haru that you can't afford it and that he has to deal with it.''

''Rin, I can't hurt him like that.''

''Makoto, you've been selfless for all of your goddamn life. Aren't you allowed to think about yourself? Can't you be selfish for once?''

''How am I not being selfish? This house means just as much to me as it does to Haru. If he's happy, I'm happy. His happiness is mine. But if he's sad or unhappy, then I'm too. Haru means the world to me, and I can't possibly let him down like that. I'm not going to stop building this house, but I'm not going to let Haru die either. That's why I have to make this work.''

Makoto got up and turned to walk away.

''Wait, where are you going?''

''I'm going to pick something off the cliff to bring back to Haru. It'll give him some comfort for now.''

''Sou wanted me to give you this.'' Rin handed him a music box. ''He said it's called 'Everything's Alright'.''

''It's going to be. Everything will be alright.''

Makoto turned around and walked off.

Rei and Nagisa explored until they found all the needed links, before they leapt to an earlier memory with the memento.

* * *

They were standing in the middle of the bedroom. Makoto was sitting in the bed. It was clear that he had just woken up, trying to rub the sleep away with his hand as he drowsily looked around himself.

''Haru?'' He called, but received no answer.

He got up and left the room, looking for his husband.

Rei and Nagisa decided to follow him downstairs, since there wasn't really any other option.

When they got downstairs, however, Makoto was nowhere in sight. What they did see was the piano, standing next to the stairs.

''I still don't understand how Makoto-san moved this thing upstairs all by himself.''

''Well, Rin-chan did mention that he was strong,'' Nagisa said.

''You can't forget that Makoto isn't as youthful as he may have been. That is something Rin-san mentioned as well.''

''True. It must have been the power of love!'' Nagisa exclaimed excitedly.

Rei rolled his eyes. ''Let's just go, okay?''

''Alright.''

Continuing their search for Makoto, they saw an open door to their left. Next to the door stood a box, the label on it informing them that it was filled with folding paper. It was the room where Makoto most likely was, so they entered it.

''I think I know where this is going,'' Rei muttered.

Inside the room they saw Haruka sitting in front of a large table, folding paper cranes, the dolphin lying next to him. About a dozen of cranes were lying on top of the table, another dozen scattered across the floor. Makoto was standing on the other side of the table.

''You went out to the craftstore this early in the morning?'' He asked.

Haruka just nodded in response.

''Origami cranes? Since when are you into origami, Haru?''

Haruka shrugged. When Makoto didn't seem to get it, he looked up to stare into Makoto's eyes.

''Makoto.''

''Oh, I see! Do you want me to help you out? We'll be done quicker that way.''

''No. You'll only ruin the paper. You're too clumsy with your big hands.''

''Okay! I know I'm not as skilled as you are, and my hands aren't as delicate or graceful as yours,'' Makoto grinned.

''Shut up, Makoto.''

Makoto laughed, ''Okay! Okay! I'll just watch quietly, alright? I promise I won't disturb you or try to help out or anything.''

''Do whatever you want,'' Haruka answered with a deadpan expression, but there was a gleam in his eye that you would've missed if you weren't paying close attention. But Makoto was, he always was.

Makoto sat down on the empty chair across from his husband, watching him folding with a fond smile painted on his face.

''So this is when it started, huh?''

''Yeah, but I still don't get why Haru-chan is folding all of those cranes.''

''I don't understand it either. Makoto-san seemed to understand, even though Haruka-san didn't explain anything to him. Not verbally, at least.''

Nagisa beamed, ''Oh! Didn't Gou-chan say something about them being able to read each other's mind?''

''I do remember Gou-san mentioning something like that. But reading someone else's mind is scientifically impossible.''

''It's the power of love, Rei-chan,'' Nagisa said as he put one of his hands on Rei's shoulder reassuringly.

''Will you stop going on about that?''

''Ehh? Don't you believe in the power of love?''

''Let's just do what we're paid for and get this over with.''

They used the plush dolphin to leap to another memory.

* * *

They were standing on the road - the one that was currently covered in dead squirrel - and the first thing they noticed was a small, blue car that was parked on the dirt. Looking closer, they saw the stuffed dolphin lying on the passenger seat.

''This must be their car.''

''At least they know how to park a car without colliding with something.''

''Rei-chan, you're still sore about that?''

''Let's just look for them.''

''Must be hard, walking around with that stick up your butt,'' Nagisa mumbled under his breath.

''WHAT?''

''Nothing!''

They walked and walked until they reached the place where the framework of the house stood. The ground in front of it wasn't smoothed out yet, little bumps here and there.

''I guess they're at the cliff.''

''Hmm, let's go there.''

When they reached the cliff, they saw Makoto and Haruka sitting on a tree trunk. The fence wasn't there yet. Behind them, the sky was dark, almost as dark as the sea, and the only source of light was the full moon, shining brightly.

Makoto was sobbing harshly, his arms wrapped around Haruka. Haruka raised his hand to wipe Makoto's tears away, which only caused him to cry harder.

''Makoto. It'll be alright.''

''I'm so sorry, Haru,'' Makoto cried, ''You shouldn't be comforting me, I should be the one comforting you.''

''It's okay.''

Makoto pressed Haruka closer against himself and Haruka wrapped his arms around Makoto's waist as quiet tears seeped out of the corners of his eyes. Makoto pressed a kiss against his husband's forehead.

''It'll be fine,'' He sighed against Haruka's bangs, ''You're going to get better and everything will be fine.'' He seemed to be convincing himself more than reassuring Haruka.

Haruka nodded and buried his head in the crook of Makoto's shoulder.

''It's okay,'' Makoto murmured as he caressed Haruka's back, ''It's alright. We'll get through this together.''

Haruka hummed. ''Together.''

''Ahw,'' Nagisa said, ''This must be just after they found out that Haru-chan was sick.''

''This memory doesn't seem too far from the rest,'' Rei observed, ''It was the discovery of his illness that caused Haruka-san to start folding the origami cranes, or so I believe.''

''So, now we know what triggered it, but we still don't know why he folds them.''

''For now, let's continue. We might find out later why he folds them. And besides, it's not like it matters that much. Haruka-san is not our client.''

''Hmm, you're right. I'm still curious, though.''

They travelled to another memory, leaving the couple alone with their sadness and each other.

* * *

They appeared into a small tavern. Makoto, Haruka, Rin and another man they weren't familiar with were sitting at a table. They looked younger than before; their faces were not very wrinkled, just a crease here and there, Makoto's hair was a soft brown and Haruka's an inky black.

The other man spoke, ''So you guys are really going for it, huh?''

''Yep!'' Makoto responded, ''The construction's starting in about half a year. It's a bit of a squeeze; we had to split the payment. But luckily we have our savings, so with a little financing, it'll work out just fine.''

''Building your dream house at such a beautiful site, isn't that awesome?'' Rin asked.

''It is,'' the other man agreed, ''You had your wedding at that lighthouse near there all those years ago, didn't you?''

''We did,'' Haruka confirmed.

''But that's not all that's special about it. We have a long history with that place.''

''That's why it's so great you got an opportunity like this,'' Rin thought.

''Indeed, so cheers, you two!''

''Yeah,'' Rin added, ''Congratulations!''

''Thank you!'' Makoto responded and Haruka nodded in agreement with a small smile on his face.

''Anyway, I'm gonna get some fresh air. You coming, Haru?''

''Sure.''

Rin and Haru got up and left the room, leaving Makoto and the other man by themselves.

''It sure has been a while since we saw you and Haru.''

''Hasn't it, Sousuke? I thought we would see the both of you more often after you moved back from Australia. Who knew how hard it is to get across a few cities nowadays.''

''I know right?'' Sousuke sighed. ''That Haru, still so quiet, huh?''

''He's actually really open. At least, he's open at home and when it's just us. I guess I don't really notice it.''

''That could be the case. Or maybe he just doesn't like me.''

''Sousuke, you know that's not true! He had to warm up to you at first, but you're his friend now!'' Makoto defended.

''Calm down, Makoto. I was just joking! I know how he's like,'' Sousuke snickered.

Makoto smiled at his friend. ''So, how have you and Rin been doing?''

''We've been fine. We're both really glad we moved back to Japan after Rin retired. He'll never admit it, but he really missed you guys. We both did.''

Makoto laughed, ''Haru and I missed you, too! I hope we can meet up more often now.''

''I'm sure we will.''

Rei turned to Nagisa. ''There isn't much left to do here. Shall we go?''

''Yeah.''

They quickly gathered the needed links and left this memory.

* * *

Rei and Nagisa were standing in front of the lighthouse. The sun was setting, slowly disappearing behind the ocean.

The windows of the lighthouse were nailed shut, and there was a note on the door. Haruka walked towards the door.

''I can't believe they would abandon him like this.''

''Me neither. I think they no longer needed him for guidance. Since everything has GPS nowadays, they need less and less lighthouses for the ships.''

Haruka turned around and looked at Makoto with a painful expression on his face.

Makoto stepped closer and gathered Haruka's hands in his.

''Look, Haru. I know this place means a lot to you. It means a lot to me as well. So, I've been thinking... In our current state, things have been pretty stable. Plus, we still have our savings. I think, that in a few years, we can afford to build a house on top of here. We'll need to save a little more, but I'm sure-''

''We'd be able to see him from the window! In the morning, at night, we'd always be nearby! And... and we could walk here any time! We'd be able to watch over him every day! He'd never be alone again.''

''I know! We'll be here all the time, and he won't be lonely ever again!''

''Makoto!'' Haruka exclaimed as he launched himself at Makoto, wrapping his arms around his husband's neck. Makoto picked him up effortlessly and spun them around, the both of them laughing loud and joyfully.

''Makoto!''

''Haru!''

When Makoto stopped spinning them around, Haruka adjusted his grip, placed his hands on both sides of Makoto's head and smashed their lips together in a passionate kiss that held all of their feelings for this place and each other.


	4. Chapter 4

Nagisa and Rei just watched the scene play before their eyes.

''It's so cute,'' Nagisa thought, ''But at the same time so sad.''

''Sad?'' Rei inquired, ''How so?''

''You saw what happened, right? You know how it ends.''

''I do believe that the ending isn't any more important than any of the moments leading to it. What matters is that over here, they are happy. They have each other, and that's what's important.''

''Rei-chan, I didn't know you were such a hopeless romantic,'' Nagisa teased.

''I am not!'' Rei defended, ''But there's something else what bothers me.''

''What is it?''

''When they say 'he' and 'Hikaru', do they mean this lighthouse?''

''I don't know, I guess.''

''That's a bit strange, don't you think?''

''A bit? More like a hell of a lot. Because that means that Haru-chan declined his treatment for the sake of a lighthouse. A fucking lighthouse, Rei-chan. ''

''It is odd, sure, but I've seen stranger things in the course of the job.''

''Me too, but... He died.''

''It's none of our business either way. Haruka-san isn't our client.''

''Hmm, you're right.''

''Let's move on.''

After doing everything they needed to do, they used the memento to go back in time.

* * *

They were sitting in the sitting area of a library. Makoto, Rin and Sousuke were sitting around a table.

''What's wrong with Haru? He's acting even stranger than before.''

''He can't help it, Rin. You know of his condition. It's been a while since he's seen you and he doesn't really know how to approach everything. It's not that he doesn't want to, it's just difficult for him.''

''I know, but.. Look, I always knew that Haru's a little different, but, like, it doesn't seem like he has it you know. Sometimes he just seems so normal, and he doesn't act like other people with the same syndrome.''

''Just because people share the syndrome, doesn't mean they're all alike. The condition differs with every single person. Look,'' Makoto explained, ''Nobody's the same person. Everyone has a different personality and quirks, and it's the same with people like Haru. There's no one on this planet who's exactly the same as him.''

''Yeah, I know that, but still...''

''And the state of the condition differs as well. Haru's more of a mild case, you see. That's why he acts more 'normal' than someone who has it more severe. Most people don't really know what it is, exactly. When some hear of Haru's condition, they think that he's insane; they imagine him repeatedly smashing his head against the wall.''

''That's crazy, he wouldn't do that!''

''I know that, Rin. We all know that. But most people aren't educated on the subject, so they just assume things.''

''Well, that's stupid.''

''I know. I think so too. Luckily, Haru doesn't care either way. Speaking of which, I'm going to go see where he is.''

Makoto got up and walked through the library, Rei and Nagisa following close behind. They found Haruka standing in front of one of the shelves. He was frowning in what seemed to be concentration as he scanned the books before him with his eyes.

''Are you looking for something, Haru?'' Makoto asked when he saw his husband's expression.

Haruka nodded slightly without looking up.

''I'll help you find it. Which one are you looking for?''

''The Little Mermaid.''

''Hmm.'' Makoto ran his index finger along the spines of a row of books. ''Here it is!'' He took the book from the shelf. ''Here you go, Haru,'' he said as he handed the book over.

Haruka accepted the book and pressed it against his chest.

''The Little Mermaid was always your favourite book, wasn't it?''

Haruka nodded again.

''Most of Andersen's fairy tales are amazing. I never really had a favourite one as a child, as I liked pretty much every single one I read.''

''I know. Your mom gave a book of his fairy tales to us as a wedding present.''

''She did. Unfortunately, The Little Mermaid isn't in it.''

''Makoto.''

''Yes?''

''Will you read this to me?''

''Of course!'' Makoto smiled.

''I like the sound of Makoto's voice. It's comforting.''

Makoto laughed, ''Shall we go get this, then?'' He offered his hand to Haruka, the other gladly taking it and the went to check the book out.

''So Haru-chan suffers from it, huh?''

''I guess it does explain his.. interesting life choices.''

''What? Marrying Mako-chan? How is that relevant to his condition?''

''I did not mean marrying Makoto-san!''

''Oh, you meant dying for a lighthouse? I suppose.''

''Well, yes, to put it bluntly.''

''Whatever, let's move on!''

They travelled to an earlier memory.

* * *

As soon as the vision returned to their eyes, they saw they were surrounded by about a dozen of people they didn't know. There were a lot of tables standing around them.

''Aw, everyone's leaving already? But I just got here!'' Nagisa pouted.

''That seems to happen to you at a lot of parties.''

''Oh, so you switched the stick for sass?''

''The stick?'' ''Yeah, the one that's up your butt.''

Rei sighed. ''Let's just go look for Makoto-san, okay? If I'm not mistaken, the lighthouse must be near here.''

''Alright.''

They started walking north, in the direct of the lighthouse, or so they presumed.

They saw Haruka and Makoto sitting next to each other against the lighthouse. They looked young, Makoto was wearing a black suit with a blue bowtie and Haruka was wearing a white suit with a black bowtie, their hands entwined.

Behind them the sky was dark and the moon was out, reflected in the ocean.

''Do you feel any different?'' Makoto asked, ''Now we got the rings on, I mean.''

''No,'' Haruka responded, ''Do you?''

''Yeah, I think I do.''

''Why? What's different?''

''I don't know. It just feels a little more official.''

''Official...'' Haruka repeated.

Makoto hummed, ''Hmm-mh.''

''Do you like the name 'Hikaru'?'' Haruka suddenly asked, ''Would you like to name him 'Hikaru'?''

''That's a lovely name, Haru. It fits him,'' Makoto beamed.

''I thought so.''

Makoto suddenly got up. ''Haru, come with me.'' He offered his hand to help Haruka to his feet as well. Haruka took it and let Makoto pull him up.

''What are you doing?''

''Just come, Haru,'' Makoto said as he entered the lighthouse, pulling Haru along with him.

When they reached the top, Makoto switched on the light. The lighthouse shone brightly and lit up the entire area.

Makoto placed his hand on Haruka's waist and the other firmly but gently holding Haruka's hand.

''What are you doing?'' Haruka asked again.

''What does it look like? Dancing, of course!''

''No! I can't dance. I don't even know how to dance. I'll probably step on your feet or something.''

''I wanted to dance with you on our wedding day,'' Makoto said disappointedly.

''Fine,'' Haruka sighed, ''What do I do?''

''Put your hand on my shoulder and follow my lead.''

''Wait! There's no music.''

''That's okay,'' Makoto murmured as he started to hum a tune. He slowly put his right foot forward, giving Haruka time to react.

They started out slowly, working up their pace when Haruka lost his balance, causing the both of them to fall over.

''Are you okay, Haru?'' Makoto asked as he rubbed the sore spot on his butt. He got up, holding out his hand for Haruka to take.

''Yeah. I told you I can't dance.''

''It's okay,'' Makoto chuckled, ''Let's try again.''

They adjusted their grip on each other and continued their waltz. After a while, Haruka got the hang of it, and they danced the night away in the lighthouse until dawn.

The memory changed, rewinding a few hours. The sun was now slowly disappearing behind the horizon. Makoto and Haruka were standing in front of the lighthouse, facing each other, holding hands.

''Do you, Nanase Haruka, take Tachibana Makoto to be your lawfully wedded husband? To promise to love and comfort, to honor and keep in sickness and in health, for as long as you shall live?''

''I do.''

''And do you, Tachibana Makoto, take Nanase Haruka to be your lawfully wedded husband? To promise to love and comfort, to honor and keep in sickness and in health, for as long as you shall live?''

''Yes, I do.''

''By the power invested in me, I now pronounce you husband and husband,'' the man turned to Makoto, ''You may now kiss your groom!''

But before Makoto could react, Haruka grabbed the front of Makoto's suit and yanked him down, pressing their lips together.

When they broke apart, Makoto leaned his forehead against Haruka's. ''I love you, Haru,'' he whispered.

''Mhh, I love you, too,'' Haruka whispered back.

''Ladies and gentlemen, I present you Mr. and Mr. Tachibana!''

''Ahw, that's so adorable- Rei-chan, are you crying?''

''I am not. There's just something in my eye.''

''Of course there is,'' Nagisa grinned.

''Weddings truely are beautiful!''

''I'M NOT CRYING!'' Rin yelled as he punched Sousuke's shoulder. The other man just started to laugh even harder.

''As nice as weddings are, let's go find a way out of here.''

They walked back to the place they were before. There were slightly more people now. Haruka and Makoto were sitting behind one of the tables. They were talking to a woman.

''Oh, I better go see how your aunt is doing,'' she said.

''Alright, Mom. Tell her thanks for coming,'' Makoto responded.

''I will.'' the woman sighed, ''I'm so proud of you boys. I wish they could've been here. I'm sure they would have loved to see you boys getting married.''

''They?'' Makoto asked confused. Haruka's eyes narrowed, but he didn't say anything.

''Oh, nevermind!'' Makoto's mother quickly walked away.

Makoto just shrugged and turned back to his husband.

''Something wasn't right here.''

''Huh? What do you mean, Rei-chan?''

''Makoto-san's mother just mentioned 'they' to Makoto-san, but he didn't understand who she was referring to. Yet Haruka-san seemed to understand.''

''That is strange. Well, whatever, let's just go.''

''Alright.''

After gathering everything they needed, they leapt backwards.

* * *

Rei and Nagisa appeared in a doctor's office. Haruka was sitting on a couch that stood at the side of the room and Makoto stood in the center of the office.

''Is the diagnosis certain?'' Makoto asked.

''Yes, we've reached a consensus on the results,'' the doctor said as he removed his glasses, ''Unfortunately, like many cases of pervasive developmental disorders, this is a rather late diagnosis. Had you known when you were a child, Mr., it could've saved you a lot of trouble. Now, are you two a couple?''

''We are,'' Haruka uttered.

''Is there anything unsettling in the relationship?''

''No.''

''And you, sir?''

''No, everything's fine.''

''I see. Well, there's a thing called equine therapy that might help you. A ranch just north of here offers it; I can contact them for you.''

''I don't need it.''

''Haru, are you sure?''

''I am.''

''Well, it's your own choice. There are also books on the subject that might help you understand the syndrome better.''

''I don't need it.''

''Sir, it might be helpfull if-''

''I don't need it! ''Haruka sneered, ''I was fine before, so I don't need it now.''

''Haru...''

The doctor turned to Makoto. ''You might wish to give the books a read. It'll help you understand him better.''

''He doesn't need it either. Makoto understands. Makoto always understands.''

Makoto just offered the doctor a weak, apologetic smile.

Rei and Nagisa walked through the door, back to the waiting room. Haruka was sitting in one of the chairs, gently caressing the plush dolphin that rested on his lap. Makoto was standing at the front desk.

''Excuse me,'' he spoke to the receptionist, ''Could you please silence the clock? The ticking really bothers him.''

''It's fine, Makoto.''

''No problem, it's standard policy. If there's anything at all that makes you uncomfortable, just let me know.''

''Thank you,'' Makoto said and he walked back to Haruka, plopping down in the chair next to his.

The receptionist removed the clock and silenced it before hanging it back on the wall.

''I guess that explains the clocks in the house,'' Rei noticed.

''Just a little longer, Haru. They'll call us in soon enough,'' Makoto muttered.

''I know.''

They looked around for memory links, when Nagisa saw the plush dolpin.

''I can't believe this thing dates all the way back here.''

''Haruka-san probably took good care of it.''

''Yeah, he probably did.''

''Let's continue.''

Activating the memento, they left this memory.

* * *

Slowly they arrived in what seemed to be the entrance of an aquarium. Makoto was standing there, looking at the orange watch on his wrist, clearly waiting for someone.

''He looks so young!'' Nagisa exclaimed, ''And handsome, too!''

''I believe we have arrived in Makoto-san's teenage years. And how handsome he might look, he is nothing but a memory.''

''Aw, Rei-chan, are you jealous?''

Rei flushed. ''I am not! I was merely stating a fact.''

Suddenly Makoto's face lit up. Rei and Nagisa peered in the direction Makoto was looking when they saw a younger version of Haruka walking towards them.

''Were you waiting for long?'' Haruka questioned.

''No,'' Makoto said with a smile, ''I just got here.''

Haruka nodded.

''Shall we go inside?''

''Okay.''

They entered the aquarium, Rei and Nagisa following closely behind. At the ticket register, Makoto offered to pay for the both of them.

''You don't have to pay for me,'' Haruka protested, ''I can pay for myself.''

''I know. I'm not paying for you because I have to,'' Makoto replied, ''I'm paying for you because I want to.''

Haruka's cheeks turned slightly red at Makoto's reasoning.

They walked through the halls of the aquarium, looking at the tanks that were filled with different creatures of the ocean. Tanks that were filled with all kinds of colourfull fish and some with mammals.

Eventually they ended up at the dolphin section of the aquarium. Haruka was staring at the animals swimming around with big eyes full of awe.

Makoto chuckled, ''You really like dolphins, don't you?''

Haruka tore his gaze away from the mammals behind glass, looked at Makoto and nodded.

''You're kind of similar to them,'' Makoto stated.

''How?''

''Well, they're really smart and friendly, and they're beautiful.''

Haruka blushed profusely at Makoto's words, and when Makoto realised what he had just said, he blushed too.

''Makoto's more like an orca,'' Haruka murmured.

''Why is that?'' Makoto asked.

Haruka didn't say anything, too embarrassed to say something, so he just stared at Makoto. Makoto's cheeks turned a darker shade of pink at Haruka's silence.

''A-Anyway, shall we continue on?''

''Okay.''

''Look at these awkward teenagers!'' Nagisa laughed.

''May I remind you that you were a teenager not so long ago yourself.''

''Yeah, but I wasn't as awkward as they are! Though, you probably were, Rei-chan,'' Nagisa thought.

''I was not,'' Rei defended.

''Either way, let's continue following them. We don't want to lose them in a place like this.''

''That would be troublesome, indeed.''

After a while, Haruka and Makoto were walking through the jellyfish part.

''Um, Haru?'' Makoto suddenly ceased walking.

''What?''

''Can I.. Would it be okay if I... held your hand?'' Makoto asked nervously, the tips of his ears turning red.

Blood found its way back to Haruka's cheeks, and in response he slipped his fingers between Makoto's.

''Do you see that, Rei-chan? So awkward.''

''They're probably just nervous. I'm presuming that this is their first date. It would only be natural that they're nervous, if not a bit awkward.''

''Hmm, you're probably right. They're cute, though.''

It was evening now and Makoto had walked Haruka home. They were standing in front of Haruka's door, Makoto saying goodbye.

''Thank you for today, Haru. I had a really great time,'' Makoto said with a soft smile. '

'Me too.''

''That's great! So, I was hoping that.. perhaps we could do this again some time.''

''I'd like that.''

Makoto's smile widened. ''So, I'll see you on Monday?''

''Yes.''

''Good night, Haru!'' Makoto was planning on waiting until Haruka was inside, but instead Haruka got up on his tiptoes, rested his hands on Makoto's shoulders and captured Makoto's lips in a kiss.

Makoto froze for a second before kissing Haruka back.

When they broke apart not long after, they were both blushing harshly. Without another word, Haruka quickly went inside and slammed the door shut behind him.

Makoto was staring dumb-foundedly at the place Haruka just stood before bursting out in laughter.

''He really is too cute,'' Makoto mumbled when he was done laughing. He lifted his fingers to touch his lips and he sighed dreamily.

''Oh my god. What a couple of dorks. They are really too much,'' Nagisa laughed.

''Lets just go!''

They had gathered the memory links throughout their clients date, and they leapt to another memory.


	5. Chapter 5

They appeared in a hallway of a building that seemed a little familiar.

''Ah, Rei-chan, is this Iwatobi High School?''

''I believe it is. How nostalgic!''

''I didn't know this school was so old!''

They saw Makoto standing a little further in the corridor, talking to another boy who was around his age. The boy's hair was pink - it reminded Nagisa of cotton candy, which made him hungry - and his eyes were purple.

''Come on, dude! Just go for it!'' The boy yelled.

''Look, Kisumi, maybe this wasn't such a good idea after all...''

''What could possibly happen? He's weird but he's not going to bite you! Worse case scenario: He says no. And then your good old friend Kisumi is here to comfort you.''

''But what if he says yes but really means no? I don't want to force anything on him.''

''Stop worrying about things like that! Besides, who would reject you? Have you ever taken a good look at yourself? You're a hot piece of ass!''

''Thanks, Kisumi, but that doesn't really help.''

''You know what? Forget about him and go out with me instead. You're hot, I'm hot; We fit together like peanut butter and jelly!''

''Kisumi, I'm seriously concerned about this. It's not really the time for your jokes!''

''I wasn't joking,'' Kisumi mumbled under his breath, but Makoto didn't hear it.

''Okay,'' Makoto said in order to calm himself down, ''Okay. I'm going to do it.''

Makoto walked in the other direction, past Rei and Nagisa, and turned around the corner. Rei and Nagisa followed him. They arrived at the beginning of a staircase. There they found Haruka, sitting on the bottom step, reading a book. Next to him lay the plush dolphin.

''He even took that thing to school with him?'' Nagisa questioned.

''It probably means a lot to him. Plus, it's not so weird for him, considering his syndrome.''

''That's true.''

''Umm..'' Makoto began.

Haruka hadn't noticed Makoto's presence yet and was startled when he heard a voice. He looked up from his book and his eyes widened when he saw who was standing in front of him.

''Um.. Hi?'' Makoto sounded very nervous.

''Hey.''

''That's- That's a nice dolphin you got there,'' Makoto remarked. When he didn't receive an answer, he continued, ''What are you reading there?''

''A book.''

''Is it about dolphins?''

''No.''

''Oh, uh, that's cool... So, I was think-''

''Lighthouses.''

''Oh.''

''There are exactly sixteen second-order Fresnel lens lighthouses left in the country. Nine of them are costal, and one of them was modified from a historic kerosene lamp lighthouse.''

''That's interesting! So, uhm, Nanase-kun, I was-''

''Haru.''

''Excuse me?''

''Haru,'' Haruka insisted.

''Oh, sorry. Haru-kun, would you-''

''Just Haru.''

''Okay, Haru. Would you like to go out some time? With me? Uhm, Together?''

''Like a date?'' ''Well, yes. B-But only if you want to! I don't want-''

''Yes.''

''T-That's great! So, do you have any place in particular you want to go? Like a cinema or-''

''Aquarium.''

''Okay! So, how about this Saturday, at, uh, two maybe?''

''Okay.''

''Great! We'll work out the details later?''

Haruka nodded.

''Then, I'll see you later?''

''Yeah.''

''Okay, so I'm gonna go now? Bye!''

''Bye.''

Makoto turned around and walked away, back to his cotton candy friend. As soon as he was out of sight, Haruka let out a deep sigh, his cheeks turning pink, and he placed his hand over his heart, clutching his shirt.

''Do you have any commentary? Anything you would like to add?'' Rei asked.

''You're not seriously asking me to point out how utterly awkward that was.''

Rei and Nagisa walked back to Makoto and Kisumi.

''What the hell was that, dude?''

''What? I asked him out!''

''It was terrible, Makoto! Absolutely pathetic!''

''Well, he said yes. That's all that matters right?''

Kisumi flung his arm around Makoto's shoulder. ''He did. And if you fuck up on your date, just remember: my offer still stands.''

''Uhh..''

Rei and Nagisa resumed exploring the school, gathering a link here and there, until they ended up in the cafeteria. Makoto and Kisumi were sitting at a table. In the corner of the cafeteria sat Haruka, alone at the table with only the stuffed dolphin for company. He was staring in Makoto's direction.

''Yeah, he's unique, but he's uniquely weird. I mean, look at him. He's always sitting there by himself, and he always has that plush fish with him. How old is he?''

''He's not weird, Kisumi, he's just different. And it's a dolphin, not a fish.''

''Fish, dolphin, what difference does it make?''

''Well, dolphins are mammals.''

''Whatever. What high schooler takes a stuffed animal to school?''

''It must mean a lot to him. I honestly don't see why that's such a problem.''

''Okay, stuffed animals aside, he's just generally weird. He doesn't have any friends and he's always staring at you.''

''He never stares at me.''

''Yes, he does. You're just too oblivious to notice! And then when he sees me he's all glaring and frowning. Like he hates me.''

''Now, Kisumi, I'm sure he doesn't hate you.''

''He does. But that's not what's important right now. What do you even see in him? Sure, he's good-looking, but there are a lot of people who are good-looking. You could get pretty much anyone you wanted. What makes him special?''

''He's just special. Of course I think he's beautiful, but that's not just it. He's a little mysterious and he has something to him that's kind of mesmerizing. He's just so interesting. For some reason I just feel naturally drawn to him. I feel like there's a lot more to him than he's showing on the outside. No, I'm sure of it,'' Makoto rambled.

''So you're into the quiet, mysterious guys?''

''I don't know,'' Makoto said a little embarrassed, ''I just like him, I guess.''

''Speaking of the devil. Don't look right away, but he's staring at you again.''

Makoto looked over at Haruka, and when their gazes met Haruka quickly averted his eyes. Makoto blushed slightly, which made Kisumi laugh.

''So embarrassed. Ah, well, not every guy could pull off being big and cute at the same time. So congratulations for that!''

''Kisumi!'' Makoto yelped, which only made Kisumi laugh harder. When he was done laughing, he wiped the corners of his eyes.

''So,'' Kisumi said teasingly, leaning his elbows on top of the table and resting his head on his hands. ''Are you going to ask him out?''

''I don't know. I mean he's probably not even interested.''

''Makoto, he's staring at you all the time. Why would he not be interested?''

''I don't know.''

''Just do it.''

''I'm not sure..''

''Do you want to go on a date with him?''

''Well, yes, but-''

''No buts then.''

''I don't think there's much more to this than we've already seen,'' Rei spoke.

''Yeah, probably. Shall we go?''

''We still need to find the memento, though.''

''You're right,'' Nagisa said and he looked around the cafeteria. He walked closer to Makoto and he saw the backpack that was standing beside the table. Nagisa recognised it from before, and he touched it.

''Hah, found it!''

''Good job, Nagisa-kun,'' Rei uttered as he prepared the memento. When he was done, he activated it and they left.

* * *

They arrived in the living room of a small house. A woman was standing at the counter and a slightly younger Makoto walked inside the room. He picked up the backpack that lay discarded next to the couch.

''I'm going to school, Mom,'' Makoto said as he turned to walk away.

''Have a nice day sweetie. Don't forget to pick up Ren and-''

''What?''

''No, nothing. Have a nice day!'' Makoto's mother quickly said.

Makoto didn't press. ''You, too. Bye!''

''Strange...'' Rei muttered.

''Did you say something?''

''No, nothing.''

''Ha! That's what she said!''

''Indeed. Now if you're done with those childish jokes, can we continue what we came here for?''

''Yes, yes,'' Nagisa sighed.

They continued exploring, and Rei noticed a clock that hung on the wall. It was ticking, and he had to admit it was a bit irritating.

Eventually Nagisa and Rei came across a room that seemed to be Makoto's bedroom. They entered it and inside they found a bunk bed, another bed that was standing on the other side of the room, a desk and chair, and two closets. A ball was lying in the corner of the room.

Rei's eyes narrowed when he saw what was inside the room, but he didn't say anything.

The ball turned out to be the needed memento, and after preparing and activating it, they used it to travel to another memory of Makoto.

* * *

When sight returned to Rei and Nagisa's eyes, they saw that they were surrounded by white. Above them, beneath them, left, right, before, behind: Everything was white. The second thing they noticed was the scent this 'memory' had.

''Oh my god, Rei-chan, do you smell that?''

''I do. It reminds me of the remains of that squirrel you killed earlier tonight.''

''It actually does! Well, I'm not sure if it's squirrel, but it definitely smells like roadkill.''

Nagisa walked around through the space, his fingers squeezing his nostrils shut, until Rei heard him gasp.

''Nagisa-kun?'' Rei questioned as he walked into the direction his partner went.

''What the hell is that?'' Nagisa asked and he pointed at what he meant.

There seemed to be an end to the white. The white slowly faded into black, and Rei could see a house, levitating above the darkness.

Rei and Nagisa both walked closer to the edge of the white.

''That's his next memory,'' Rei claimed.

''Yeah, but why is it floating around and about the darkness?''

''I don't know; it's just not linking the memories together for construction,'' Rei said, ''There must be a malfunction within the machine's ADG.''

''Again? I thought the last fix was foolproof for another six months. I can't believe those people in the maintenance department. What a bunch of idiots,'' Nagisa groaned.

''Look, we might still be able to do this. We've already gotten his teenage years saved. So don't worry.''

''You're right.''

''I guess this is it, then. There's nothing we can do here. Ready to finalize before activation?''

''Yeah, you go first.''

Rei disappeared. Nagisa sighed. What a shame, he thought, I was really looking forward to it. And Nagisa disappeared too.

* * *

They were back at the cliff, elder Makoto standing before them.

''... And that is all I know. Sorry I can't be of more help,'' Makoto apologised.

''Then that will have to be enough,'' Rei said.

''Now all that's left to do is linking your registered desire to go to the moon to your early memories. Then we'll pull the switch and voilà! You'll be on the moon in no time.''

''May I ask you a question?'' Makoto asked.

''Of course.''

''If you could make Gou-chan disappear, that means you can alter this world. Then... can you not simply make things happen, and fulfill my wish here and now?''

''That would work, if this were your one true set of memories.''

''What do you mean? What is this, then? What am I?''

''This is just a copy, a canvas for us to work with, if you will. As for you... You are merely an algorithm traced from Makoto. Enough to reflect his likeness, but far from complete. All we can do is prepare this canvas in a logically consistent way. And then, when we transfer your registered desire to your childhood, the machine will generate your new life, one where the desire dictates your behaviour. The result of that, would then be written to the real Makoto,'' Rei explained.

''So you see,'' Nagisa continued, ''Even if we satisfy you, you are merely a 'read-only' program.''

''I believe there's no point in explaining it even further. He's not real either way.''

''You don't mean that, Rei-chan. If you did, then you wouldn't even have started an explanation.''

''Let's just go, we should stop wasting time.'' Rei vanished.

Just as Nagisa was beginning to leave, Makoto spoke.

''Doctor? Is that.. what I truly am?''

Nagisa couldn't bear the pain in Makoto's voice, so he quickly followed Rei.

* * *

They arrived on their work platform. Several Makoto's - all from a different point in his life - were standing in a line, surrounded by the memento's that belonged to specific points in Makoto's life, the Makoto's representing the time of them.

''All of our night's work,'' spoke Nagisa.

''That's right. Now, all we need to do is pass his desire from the latest memory to the earliest.'' '

'Right, let's get going!'' Nagisa exclaimed and he pumped his fist into the air.

They connected the mementos to each other, passing on the desire from certain points of his life to another.

''That's it,'' Rei said as they were done, ''That's about all the ones we can work with.''

''Ready to pull the switch?''

''Of course! Why wouldn't I be?''

''I don't know, whatever. Okay, pull the lever, Kronk!'' Nagisa yelled.

''What are you talking about, Nagisa-kun? And who is Kronk?''

''It's... Never mind, just pull the switch.''

Rei decided not to question any further, and he just pulled the switch. Everything turned very bright for a moment, but everything quickly returned to normal.

''Alright,'' Nagisa said, ''Let's go check out what souvenirs he brought back from the moon!''

''I highly doubt the moon has a souvenir shop.''

''Rei-chan... Oh god, let's just go!''

They walked over to the oldest Makoto and returned to his time.

* * *

They looked around themselves. They were standing in front of the house, but everything looked the same; as if nothing had changed.

''This is the same setting as his real last accessible memory...''

''That's weird'', Nagisa thought, ''Usually there's at least some change.''

''Weird is it, indeed,'' Rei agreed, ''Something isn't right. These memories... they feel more than just having happened again. They are exactly the same.''

''That's impossible, Rei-chan. We transferred the desire, didn't we?''

''We did...'' Rei thought about the whole situation for a while. ''If this is the same memory, then he should be at the cliff, overlooking the lighthouse.''

''Hmm, let's go check it, then.''

They walked along the path that had become very familiar. When they got to the cliff, they saw Makoto, sitting on the bench. Gou was standing behind him.

''Makoto-san?'' Rei called.

Makoto stood up at the sound of his name. He took a step aside, facing Rei and Nagisa.

''What a pleasant surprise,'' he said, ''We don't get many visitors around here.'' Makoto flashed them a smile that didn't quite reach his eyes.

''It's like a déjà vu.''

''My name is Dr. Ryugazaki Rei and this is Dr. Hazuki Nagisa. Are you familiar with the Sigmund Agency of Life Generation?''

''Are you two from they agency?''

Rei and Nagisa looked at each other.

''What a coincidence, I've just been thinking of calling you. Gou-chan, can you please get us some tea?''

The woman didn't respond. ''... Gou-chan?''

Gou vanished and Makoto took a few steps back, obviously startled.

''Freeze him, too,'' Rei commanded.

Nagisa did as he was told, and the old man froze. ''...Well?''

''Wait here, I'm going back to send the desire signal again. Perhaps the signal just wasn't sent right, or we made a mistake with the connection or something.''

''Or...''

''Or what?''

''WRONG LEVER!'' Nagisa cried.

''How could it have been the wrong lever, Nagisa-kun? There's only one lever.''

''Are you serious- Did you never- Whatever just go!''

Rei rolled his eyes and he left.

Nagisa waited there for a little bit, looking around himself until Rei returned.

''It transferred successfully for sure. I checked everything and there was no mistake in the connection either. Did anything change?''

''Nope, not even a hair. How could this be? Even if his desire doesn't work alone, why is there no change at all?''

''I have no idea!'' Rei huffed, ''We didn't do anything wrong, there are no mistakes; in theory everything should work out just fine! So why isn't it working?!'' Rei was basically screaming at this point, vending his frustration on Nagisa.

Nagisa took a deep breath before he spoke. ''...Look, maybe this lack of sleep is getting to us. If I had known that this would take the whole night, I would've brought coffee.''

''You're right,'' Rei sighed, ''Either way, this isn't going anywhere like this, even if every second we have is valuable. Let's take a break until morning... Hopefully Makoto-san can hang on until then.''

''Sure, I still have some calls to make anyway.''


	6. Chapter 6

Rei was sitting at the cliff, alone, looking in the distance as he was lost in his thoughts. Nagisa was off somewhere, making the calls he needed to make. Rei sighed in frustration.

It doesn't make any sense, he thought. Why did the machine have no effect? Makoto-san's registered wish to go to the moon was successfully transferred, yet... There wasn't even a trace of him wanting to go to the moon after the transfer. Unless... unless a secondary condition for the desire was changed in the process. Only then would the same desire produce two different outcomes at two different points in time. There's no denying that Haruka-san played an important role through it all. If there's anything that could have caused the core to change, he would be the top suspect. But out of all things, what exactly caused it? Haruka-san... What exactly did you do?

Ah... The sun's rising.

Rei got up and took a few steps forward, seeing the sun slowly appearing behind the horizon.

''We don't have much time left,'' Rei mumbled to no one in particular. ''I wonder if Nagisa-kun came up with anything.''

Rei walked back to the house. When he reached the front door, he stopped and took a deep breath. He started coughing harshly when he inhaled an unbearable fragrance.

''Ugh,'' he huffed and he squeezed his nostrils shut, ''You can smell that squirrel Nagisa-kun ran over all the way from here now.''

He opened the door and entered the house. He climbed the stairs to check up on Makoto. When he walked inside the room, he saw the doctor standing next to the bed and he approached him.

''How is Makoto-san doing?''

''Barely hanging on. What are you two doing?''

''We just... We just couldn't make any progress.''

''You'd better be quick... We don't have long. If you're looking for your colleague, I think he's in the kitchen.''

''Alright. Thank you.''

Rei bowed quickly before he walked away. He went back downstairs, looking for the kitchen. He opened the closest door that would lead him to a room he hadn't entered before, and to his delight it lead him to the kitchen. Inside he found Nagisa, sitting at the table, clearly still on the phone.

''No, I understand that part, but-'' Nagisa said, ''...Okay. Did you confirm it in his records? And why again was this information not made available to us? Or the medical doctor, for all I care!''

''Are you speaking with the headquarter?''

Nagisa covered the mic with his hand. ''Yeah, I'll fill you in after. Now, shh!''

Rei walked closer to Nagisa. On the table he saw the blue and green paper crane.

''Wait, isn't this...'' Rei spoke, ''Where did you find this?''

''In the lighthouse, before we started. Seriously, shhhhh!'' Nagisa emphasized his words by putting his index finger against his lips.

''I'm not sure. We'll have to check on that,'' Nagisa continued the conversation, ''Right, that part we can do.''

Rei knew there was nothing he could do until Nagisa got off the phone and explained everything to him, so he left the kitchen.

He looked around the house and entered another room. The room he entered appeared to be the study. Gou was standing in front of a couch, on top of which two children lay. Rei assumed that this must be Aiichiro and Momotaro.

''But maaa... I don't wanna go to school!'' the boy with orange hair whined.

''It's Sunday, dear.''

Gou put a blanket on top of the children. She noticed Rei had entered the room and she turned to him. ''Shh, let them sleep,'' she whispered.

Rei nodded and followed her out of the room.

''Those two shouldn't have stayed up so late. I thought that Ai would wanted to go to sleep, but I guess Momo persuaded him to stay up with him. Either way, I should have watched them.''

''Well, it's not an everyday circumstance.''

''I know, but... I'm just so exhausted. I'm sure you are even more so.''

She plopped down on a chair at the table. Rei sat down across from her.

''Is there something you wanted to ask me?'' Gou asked.

''You know,'' Rei started, ''It's pretty unusual for someone like you to work here. With two children and all, I mean.''

''It's not that bad, really. There's a school bus that passes through here.''

''I hope you won't find this rude, Gou-san, but how did you even end up here?''

''Well...'' Gou said with a soft voice, pain clear in her eyes, ''A few years ago, my husband passed away.''

''What happened?''

''Sei was in the army, he... They were the last batch to be deployed overseas.''

''I'm so sorry.''

''Sei was gone, and I was left to take care of Ai and Momo by myself. It was all so sudden and... I panicked. Our savings were low, and the job market was grim. My uncle introduced me to Makoto, who had just lost his husband as well, and he offered me this job. I accepted with gratitude. This place was peaceful, too. It helped us with our grieving. My and my children's grieving, that is. Makoto's, I'm not sure.''

''Doesn't the government issue grants to war widows to help them get back on their feet?''

''They do. And eventually, I received aid. But by then, Makoto started to have trouble on his own, he needed my help. Momotaro and Aiichiro liked this place, too. And so we stayed. As for Makoto, he was glad as well. He never had any children of his own, and he was fond of Ai and Momo. I think, deep down, he really wanted a family.''

Rei thought about all Gou had told him. ''This is your fulltime job, isn't it?''

''It is.''

''What are you going to do when all of this is over? When Makoto-san...'' He didn't finish his sentence.

''Find a job in the city and live on, I suppose. What else is there to do? It's a shame, though... I'm going to miss Makoto and this place. Maybe I'll come back every once in a while to visit.''

''Thank you for telling me this, Gou-san. I should probably go see if Nagisa-kun is done. We don't have much time left, after all.''

Rei got up and turned to go back to the kitchen.

''Oh, hey!'' Gou called.

Rei turned back around.

''Before Makoto fell unconscious, he told me that you two would probably be coming soon. He said that he probably wouldn't get the chance himself, but... He wanted me to thank you for him. So, thank you.''

Rei nodded in response and he went back to the kitchen, where Nagisa was still seated at the table, though he wasn't calling anymore.

''...Hm.''

''What is it?'' Rei asked.

''It seems like our sweet little Mako-chan here has some hidden records from the old days.''

''Hidden records?''

''Hidden medical records, to be precise. Apparently, during his youth, he was administered a large dose of enhanced beta blockers. And what luck! They seem to have this little side-effect on a curious little thing called memories.''

Rei walked through the room. ''Beta blockers...'' he thought out loud. ''...Makoto-san didn't have a heart condition, did he?''

''Apparently not. Which leads to wonder... if the 'side-effects' were intended to be merely just that to begin with. And in such a large amount... Its impact on his memories at the time of administration must've been significant.''

''You think that's what kept us out of his earliest memories?''

''Well, there's nothing wrong with the machine, I'll tell you that. The maintenance department was all butthurt when I said they had fucked up. Going on about how I shouldn't blame them for my own stupidity. But I'm not stupid, Rei-chan, this wasn't our fault! It was all thanks to the beta blockers nobody cared to tell us about!''

''I know you're not stupid, Nagisa-kun.'' Rei pushed his glasses back in place. ''So, what now?''

''I was just given the reconfiguration frequencies that should get us past the blockers. And once we're in his childhood, it might finally be early enough to transfer his desire for it to work.''

''Then what are we waiting for?''

''But there's one thing...''

''Of course, there's always that one thing,'' Rei groaned.

''In order to activate the new frequencies, we'll need a trigger.''

''A trigger?''

''Something that exists strongly in the bridging inaccessible memory. And we'll need to give it to Mako-chan, for him to stimulate his memory internally.''

''But what do we know of that? We've only gotten a glimpse of his childhood memories. And even if we find a childhood photo or something, Makoto-san's unconscious.''

''Yeah, back to square one,'' Nagisa sighed. ''You know, this job hasn't been such a pain in the ass for me since Miho-chan's case last year.''

''Likewise.''

''This is killing me,'' Nagisa huffed, ''I'm going out to get some fresh air.''

He got up and left the kitchen. Rei lingered a little longer to stare at the origami crane before he left as well. It didn't take long until Nagisa came back running inside.

''IT SMELLS!'' he yelled.

''Nagisa-kun, quit barging in and out of doors. And keep your voice down! There are children sleeping in the other room,'' Rei scolded him.

''The roadkill, Rei-chan, it smells!'' Nagisa insisted.

''Well, it's your fault for... Wait a minute... YOU'RE A GENIUS, NAGISA-KUN!''

Nagisa grinned proudly. ''Of course I'm a genius. Why do you sound so surprised?''

Gou walked towards them. ''What's going on? Ai and Momo are still sleeping.''

''The last memory, the one we were stuck at-''

''It was the same smell!''

''What are you two talking about?'' Gou asked confused.

''The olfactory receptors are directly linked to the brain's limbic system. Smell is arguably the most effective sense for memory recall,'' Rei explained.

''We can use it as the stimulant to bridge his childhood memories! And the best part is that even though Mako-chan's unconscious, he's still susceptible!'' Nagisa exclaimed excitedly, ''This is great... This is absolutely awesome!'' He turned to Rei. ''Now you just need to go fetch that piece of dead squirrel!''

''Yes, and- Wait, why should I go fetch it? You are the one who ran over it!''

''Exactly, I have already done my part. Plus, it was my idea.''

''Oh, you mischievous little...''

''No swearing, Rei-chan!''

''Uhm,'' Gou interrupted them, ''If it helps, I have a pair of gloves you can borrow.''

* * *

''They're not really disposable gloves, but that'll probably change after this,'' Gou said as she handed Rei the gloves.

''Thank you, Gou-san.''

Rei headed outside, making his way towards their car.

''This wasn't in the job's description,'' he muttered under his breath.

When he reached the car, he opened the door to the backseat to search through it, finding the item he was looking for. He grabbed the valved container. He walked to the squirrel and gathered what he needed.

Then, he went back to the house and got everything set up.

* * *

''...So once we get to that exact point, I will send the signal,'' Rei told the doctor, ''When I do, I want you to release the valve for approximately three seconds.''

''Certainly.''

Rei sat down in the chair.

''You should know that Tachibana-san's condition is deteriorating fast. So... This might be your last chance, you two. Whatever you do in there, good luck.''

''Thanks, but I think luck's the last thing we need right now,'' Nagisa said as he plopped down on the couch.

Rei and Nagisa put their helmets back on. The helmets on their and Makoto's heads activated and they went back to Makoto's latest accessable memory. They used the ball to go to the memory they couldn't reach before.

They were surrounded by white once again, the ball the only thing that was there - besides them, that is.

''To think this little thing's causing us so much trouble. I just want to kick it to outer space.'' Nagisa pointed at the ball, pretending to kick it.

''I would prefer for you to refrain from such things. Now all we can do is send the signal and hope for the best.''

''Are you ready, Rei-chan?''

''Why wouldn't I be?''

They sent the signal. It took a few seconds before their surroundings lit up, the ground shaking beneath their feet.

''Something is happening...'' Rei remarked, ''Quick, send it again!''

Nagisa did as he was told, and the ground was shaking again, the white around them flashed green before turning into a faint red.

''What's going on-''

* * *

''Doctor, something's wrong!'' Gou said, panic evident in her voice.

''What?'' the doctor asked. ''... Take over for me, Mikoshiba-san.''

Gou walked to the other side of the bed, the doctor taking up the spot Gou previously occupied.

''His condition has been de-stabilized... Intake levels must be reconfigured.''

* * *

''Rei-chan, what's happening to this place?''

''... It has been de-stabilized. Get out!''

''What?''

''Get out of his memory. Now!''

''What are you talking about?'' Nagisa asked confused, shocked by the harshness of Rei's voice.

''If the system doesn't restabilize soon, the shock might permanently damage whoever is in here.''

''You are kidding right? You've got to be kidding me right now.''

''Does it look like I'm kidding?!''

''What? Why aren't you getting out then?''

''I can't, Nagisa-kun.''

''What do you mean you can't?!''

''Look, if the both of us get out under this state, all of our work will be reset...''

''Well, fuck that then!''

''Nagisa-kun, you don't understand! There won't be enough time to redo everything before Makoto-san will-''

''Damn you, Rei-chan! Don't pull that contrived crap on me! Don't sacrifice yourself like you're some kind of really cool hero from an action movie! This isn't a movie, and you're not a cool hero, Rei-chan! You're a dork, and a moron for thinking like this!''

''Then why are you being one too? Get the hell out of here!''

''Screw that! If you're gone I'll probably get paired up with Goro-chan! Do you know what he's like? He never talks about anything but ostriches! Fucking ostriches, Rei-chan!''

''Damn it, Nagisa-kun...'' Rei sighed, ''This is what I get for helping you cheat through the entrance exams. I told you it was wrong but you insisted it wasn't a big deal!''

* * *

The doctor fumbled with the machine Makoto was hooked up to, pressing buttons here and there. Then he suddenly stopped, his body relaxing as he leaned back.

''Doctor...''

''I think we're okay, for now.''

* * *

Rei and Nagisa were now arguing audibly.

''... And guess what? Your butterfly swimsuit is not beautiful at all; it looks ridiculous!''

Rei gasped. ''You take that back!''

''No, it's the truth and-''

''Wait a minute...'' Rei interrupted.

''And at the last Christmas party, you- Oh.''

''Come on, Nagisa-kun, let's go before that happens again.''

''Um, Rei-chan.. you know I didn't mean to call you a moron, right? You know I didn't mean it?''

''I know you didn't, Nagisa-kun.''

''But I did mean that you're a dork, because let's be real, you are a fucking dork.''

Rei rolled his eyes. ''Well, here goes nothing.''

They were transported to the memory.

* * *

They were now standing in the back yard of the house they had seen.

''Wow, I can't believe that worked,'' Nagisa spoke.

''So we actually made it after all. But, I'm not sure if we're going to like this place.''

''What do you mean. This place looks pretty peaceful to me.''

''Nagisa-kun, did you notice something odd in Makoto-san's room earlier?''

''Like what?''

''There was something strange, did you notice?''

''No, I suppose not. Why, was there something I should've noticed?''

''Nevermind... I just hope I'm wrong.''

They walked a little through the yard and saw a set of swings. On one of them sat Makoto, on the other one sat a boy with inky black hair and bright blue eyes.

''Wait a second... Is that... Haru-chan?''

''What? That's impossible. We saw that Makoto-san met Haruka-san in high school!''

''No, it's definitely him. That means...''

''That they knew each other before high school, but Makoto-san forgot about him because of the beta blockers he received.''

''That's so sad! Poor Haru-chan, no wonder he was always watching Mako-chan.''

''Indeed. They found each other back, though.''

''Yeah, but can you imagine what Haru-chan must've felt like? Your best friend suddenly forgetting all about you. I bet he never knew about the blockers!''

''Best friend? How do you know they were best friends? For all we know they could have been mere acquaintances.''

''No, Rei-chan, they were best friends, I can feel it.''

''Suppose you are right, I'm surprised Haruka-san still longed for Makoto-san. Imagine your best friend suddenly ignoring you, claiming to not know who you are. Would you want to get involved with them again?''

''Hmm... I don't know,'' Nagisa contemplated, tapping his finger on his chin. ''It must have been the power of love that binds them!'' he concluded, hitting the palm of his left hand with his right fist.

''Will you stop going on about the power of love already?''

''You're really no fun,'' Nagisa pouted.

''Let's just go on, okay? We've got someone dying over there!''

''Yes, yes. It's a crazy idea though...''

''What is?''

''Those two boys over there. They look like they're about twelve years old or something. Over here they're fine, but in reality one of them is dying and the other is already dead. We have seen some of the most important parts of their lives, things they know nothing about. They're so young, they still have their whole lives ahead of them, yet we have already experienced bits and pieces of it.''

''If you put it that way, it does sound a bit peculiar. But this is our job, this happens with every single patient. Why did you suddenly decide to comment on it, when you never have before?''

''I don't know, Rei-chan. They just give me this kind of feeling.''

They walked closer to the boys, the both of them sitting there in silence, though it was a comfortable one.

Then, two small children ran towards them, a boy and a girl. The little boy had brown hair with matching brown eyes and the girl had dark olive-green hair with blue-green eyes. They couldn't be much older than four. The girl was craddling the ball against her chest

''Onii-chan! Haru-chan!'' they called.

''Onii-chan?'' Nagisa asked as he turned to Rei, ''Since when does Mako-chan have any siblings? Shouldn't we have seen them in his later memories?''

Oh no, Rei thought. This confirmed his suspicions, even if he didn't know the exact circumstances. He didn't want to say anything to Nagisa yet, therefore he made something up.

He cleared his throat before he spoke. ''Perhaps they weren't critical factors in Makoto-san's important memories. Maybe he doesn't have a good relationship with them. It's not uncommon for siblings to not have a good bond with each other.''

''Like you and your brother?''

''I assure you that everything is just fine between my brother and I!''

''I was just joking, Rei-chan. But I can't imagine that Mako-chan would have problems with his siblings.''

''We'll just have to wait and see what happens. This memory is obviously important, considering he had the medication to block it.''

''Yeah, I wonder what happened. The ambiance seems good enough.''

The children were now standing in front of the swings, grins of excitement plastered on their little faces.

''Onii-chan, will you and Haru-chan play with us?''

''Sure. You two can go ahead and Haru-chan and I will join you in a little while, alright?''

''Okay!'' And they turned around to walk off, but Makoto stopped them.

''Wait! Don't go too far away and stay on the sidewalk.''

''We know!'' the girl huffed.

''Yeah, Mommy told us already!''

''Okay, okay!'' Makoto held his hands up in defense. ''I just wanted to make sure.''

The children now ran off, the girl faster than the boy, which made the boy yell ''Wait for me!''.

Makoto chuckled at his siblings' behaviour when Haruka suddenly spoke.

''Don't call me '-chan', Makoto.''

Makoto turned to Haruka with a small smile on his face.

''Sorry,'' he said, not sounding sorry at all.

Haruka huffed and he turned his head to the other side, pouting. Makoto giggled at his friend's grumpy response.

Then Haruka turned back around to look Makoto in the eyes.

''Makoto.''

''Hmm?'' Makoto stared back into Haruka's eyes, searching what Haruka wanted. ''You want me to push you?''

Haruka averted his eyes and nodded.

Makoto jumped off the swing and stepped behind Haruka's swing. He grabbed the seat with both hands.

''Hold on tight, okay?''

When he saw Haruka's hands tighten their grip on the iron chains, Makoto took a few steps back, dragging the swing with him before releasing it. When Haruka swung back, Makoto pushed him again, his hands gentle on Haruka's back, yet pushing with much strength.

Rei and Nagisa watched for a while before they decided to take a look around. They walked out of the yard and onto the street. They saw Makoto's mother talking to a neighbour and the twins playing with the ball on the side walk.

There wasn't much else to see as the street was very quiet. They saw Makoto's mother finishing her talk with with the elder lady and she walked into the yard, presumably towards Makoto and Haruka. Nagisa and Rei followed her, since that was pretty much the only thing that was going to happen. They wouldn't want to miss anything that might be important.

''Makoto,'' she said as she reached her oldest son and his friend. ''I'm going out to get some groceries, can you watch the twins for me?''

''Sure.'' Makoto smiled at the woman.

''Thank you, honey.'' His mother ruffled his hair, making it even messier. ''You know, I'd take them with me, but they can be such a handful.''

''I know, I remember the last time we took them to the store. It's okay, I'll watch over them.''

''Thanks again. I'd better get going now. Have fun boys!'' Mrs. Tachibana smiled at the boys once again before she turned around and walked away.

''What happened last time?'' Haruka asked.

''We were in a department store and suddenly they were gone. Mom and I searched all over for them. After about an hour we were so desperate and then a lady that worked there asked us if we were looking for two children. She described Ran and Ren and told us where they were. Turns out they were playing hide and seek without telling us. I almost had a heart attack!''

Rei looked as Mrs. Tachibana went inside the house and suddenly an unpleasant shiver ran down his spine. Something told him that this was it; something was going to go horribly wrong. He sprinted out of the yard.

''Rei-chan, where are you going?'' Nagisa shouted at Rei as he ran after him, his shorter legs not being able to keep up with his partner's fast pace.

''The twins!'' Rei yelled back.

They found the two standing on the end of the driveway. Their ball had rolled under the mini van that was parked on the other end of driveway and they were arguing.

''You go get it.''

''No, you go get it!''

''Why should I go get it? You are the one who kicked it under!''

''Yeah, but I am the oldest, so you have to do what I say!''

''You're not the oldest! Onii-chan and Haru-chan are way older than you!''

''Well, I'm a girl!''

''What does that have to do with anything?''

Their bickering continued on as their mother stepped inside the van. They didn't notice that the van was turned on, too engrossed in their arguement.

Nagisa seemed to understand where this was going. ''Oh no,'' he sighed.

As if on cue Makoto and Haruka came walking out of the yard, intending to fulfill the promise they had made earlier.

Mrs. Tachibana set the car in reverse, not seeing the small children through the rear window.

''Wait!'' Makoto yelled but it was already too late.

The bumper of the car came in contact with the twins and a loud crash! could be heard.

''NOOOO!''


	7. Chapter 7

A heartbreaking scream echoed through the empty street as Makoto speeded over to the two small figures that were lying motionless on the pavement.

Mrs. Tachibana got out of the car and walked over to the back of the van. Her legs gave out underneath her when she saw her children on the sidewalk; the oldest cradling the lifeless bodies of the younger ones against his chest, fat tears rolling down his face as he was sobbing loudly.

Neighbours who had heard all the noise came slowly pouring out of their houses, trying to see what all the commotion was about. They were all equally shocked when they saw what had happened.

''S-Someone... Call an ambulance!'' Makoto managed to choke out between sobs. When no one moved or responded Makoto started to shout.

''DO SOMETHING!''

Hearing the ever gentle boy shout snapped some of the spectators out of it. People started to move all around, but Makoto looked back down at the limp bodies of his siblings.

''Ran... Ren...'' he cried.

Meanwhile Haruka was watching the scene with wide eyes, frozen in fear. He looked as if he desperately wanted to reach out to Makoto, comfort him even if that was impossible, but he was nailed to the ground.

''Wake up!'' Makoto pleaded as he ran his fingers through his sister's hair, spreading blood over his hand. ''Wake up, please!'' He softly slapped his brother's cheek, trying to hit him back to consciousness.

Drops of his tears fell on their faces, mixing with blood before marking their pale, cold skin.

''It's my fault,'' Makoto whispered, ''It's all my fault.''

Makoto putting the blame on himself was Haruka's cue to do something. He stepped closer to his friend.

''It's not your fault, Makoto,'' he said softly, trying to comfort his broken friend.

''It is! I was supposed to look over them! They were my responsibility! A-And now... now they're...'' Makoto didn't finish his sentence. It hurt too much to say it; as if stating it out loud would make it official.

Haruka's eyes widened even further, not being used to hear that voice speaking in such a hard tone, especially since it was directed at him. He fell to his knees behind his friend, wrapping his arms around his torso and burying his face between his shoulder blades, quiet tears seeping out of the corners of his eyes.

Mrs. Tachibana still sat on the driveway, petrified. She looked as if her mind just couldn't comprehend what just had happened.

Makoto continued crying and screaming, the sight and sound absolutely heart wrecking.

Tears were brimming in Nagisa's eyes when he turned to Rei.

''Not such a peaceful atmosphere after all, huh?''

Rei couldn't take the sadness lacing Nagisa's otherwise cheery voice and he wrapped his arms around him, pulling him into his chest.

Unlike Nagisa, Rei had already known that something was bound to happen to the twins - all the clues had been there - and therefore he wasn't affected by it that much. But Nagisa. Soft-spoken, sensitive, kind Nagisa had no idea that things would turn out like this. Thanks to his positivity he tended to forget the negative aspects of things, even if they might've been painfully obvious. Sometimes Rei wondered if Nagisa was even suited for a job like theirs, with his bubbly personality that successfully hid the fragility of his heart. Nagisa really cared too much about others sometimes, even if he didn't know them personally. Rei never voiced these thoughts, though, as he knew that Nagisa truly loved his job.

Nagisa pulled back from Rei.

''Thanks, Rei-chan.''

''Have you calmed down a bit?''

''Yeah. It's still so sad though.''

''Indeed, but it's not as if Makoto-san remembers this.''

''I know. But Haru-chan does! And their mother! Can you imagine what she must've felt like? Killing two of your children. At least Mako-chan had the beta-blockers to erase the memories.''

''The memories are fuzzily unlinked, but not erased. Somewhere inside of him, the aftermath of those memories probably lingered.''

''That only makes it worse.''

''Sorry.''

''Makoto's mother didn't take the blockers! Remember at the wedding, the comment she made? She was talking about 'them'; she meant the twins!''

''I know. Haruka-san remembered this, too. It must have been quite a traumatic experience, seeing something like this happen at such a young age.''

Nagisa nodded, not really knowing what he should say. He turned back towards the scene.

The two crying boys, the paralized woman, curious neighbours, all surrounding the corpses of two children. Children who left this earth far too soon.

''I really don't like this place, Rei-chan. Let's go.''

''Alright. We should hurry up either way. We don't have much time left.''

They walked closer to Ren and Ran.

''Seems like this wasn't the only unlinked memory.''

''Odd,'' Rei said, ''It's not putting up a barrier anymore.''

''Don't jinx it,'' Nagisa spoke before they left this place full of misery and tears behind.

* * *

They appeared in the bedroom Makoto shared with the twins. Makoto was sitting on the biggest bed, playing a game on some sort of gaming device that neither of them recognised.

He seemed pretty caught up with whatever he was playing until the door swung open and Ran and Ren stumbled inside, the former clutching a book that was almost as large as she was against her chest.

''Onii-chan!''

Makoto looked up from his game only to be greeted by the eager faces of his siblings.

''What is it?'' he asked with a soft voice as he put the game aside.

''Can you read to us?'' Ran shoved the book in Makoto's hands.

Makoto accepted the book and he turned it around, looking at the cover.

''This again?''

The twins nodded. ''So, you'll read it?''

''Of course!'' Makoto said, not being able to deny his siblings anything, and he patted on the bed next to him.

The children climbed on the bed and sat down on either side of their older brother.

''You guys really love Andersen's fairy tales, don't you?''

Ran and Ren hummed in agreement.

''When I grow up I'm going to be a writer just like Andersen! And then I'll write the greatest stories ever! And I'll give every kid the book for free! And then I'll be rich, and I'll buy us a big house, and we all get our own room!'' Ren exclaimed excitedly.

''How are you going to be rich when you give the books away for free? Stupid.''

''Ran, don't call your brother stupid!'' Makoto scolded.

''The book is free for kids, but the grown-ups still have to pay!''

''How is that for free? I thi-''

''Now, now,'' Makoto interrupted, not wanting their little arguement to escalate any further. ''I'm sure your book will be amazing.''

''And me, Onii-chan? I'm gonna be a writer, too!'' Ran said, apparently wanting some of her brother's attention as well.

''Your book will be amazing as well. Now, back to Andersen's book. Any suggestions on which story you want me to read?''

''The Red Shoes!''

''The Steadfast Tin Soldier!''

''No, you picked last time!''

''But we've already heard The Red Shoes a thousand times!''

''Well, The Steadfast Tin Soldier is boring!''

''It's not!''

''Okay, okay. Shall I pick then?''

The twins agreed on that.

''What's your favourite story, Onii-chan?''

''Hmm.'' Makoto thought about it for a second. ''I don't have a favourite. I like them all.''

''Aw, I wanted to hear Onii-chan's favourite.''

''I'm sorry. I can read you Haru-chan's favourite, though,'' Makoto proposed.

''Okay!''

''What's Haru-chan's favourite?''

''The Little Mermaid.''

''Oh! I like that one, too!''

''Me too, me too!''

''So do I,'' Makoto chuckled as he opened the book and searched for the right page. ''Are you ready?''

''Yes,'' Ren and Ran said in unison.

''Okay.'' Makoto cleared his throat before he started reading. ''Once upon a time...''

Rei nudged Nagisa.

''Let's go.''

''Ahw, I wanted to hear the rest of the story,'' Nagisa pouted.

''As much as I'd love to hear the rest of the story as well, we don't have much time left.''

''You're right,'' Nagisa admitted, but he was still visibly disappointed.

They walked closer to Makoto and they left.

* * *

It was already dark outside when Rei and Nagisa arrived at what seemed to be a carnival. There were little stands here and there, some offering all kinds of food, others hosting games and some selling trinkets. The place was decorated with colourfull balloons and other festivities.

''Some kind of festival, huh?'' Nagisa enthusiastically looked around himself.

''Actually, Nagisa-kun, it looks more like a carnival,'' Rei stated matter-of-factly.

''Yeah, yeah, whatever. Let's look around!'' Nagisa tried to walk away, but Rei stopped him by holding the back of his lab coat.

''May I remind you that we are not here to play or fool around? We are not here to have fun, but because this is our job, and our client is, in fact, dying right now!''

Nagisa puffed his cheeks out. ''I know. But we still need to look around! We have to find our client before we can do anything, right?''

''Well, yes, but-''

''Let's go then!''

Nagisa tugged his coat free from Rei's grasp and strolled away, Rei automatically following his partner.

They walked towards the stands, finding who they were looking for standing by a prize-shooting stand, accompanied by a woman and another boy. He was leaning over the counter on his tippy toes, holding one of the guns as he was aiming for a prize.

''Oh my god, Rei-chan, look at them! They're so young and small!''

''I see. The woman with them must be Mrs. Tachibana, and judging by her size she must be pregnant with Makoto-san's siblings. I estimate them to be around eight years old.''

''Yeah, they're so tiny and she's so fat!'' Nagisa giggled.

''Nagisa-kun, that's not a nice thing to say! She's just pregnant, and therefore larger. Especially since she's expecting twins!''

Nagisa ignored him as he watched Makoto standing back on his feet, handing the clerk back the gun. Now Makoto was standing up straight, he could see that the other boy was a bit taller than Makoto.

''Oh my god, Rei-chan! Look!'' Nagisa exclaimed as he pointed at the children.

''What?''

''Little Haru-chan is bigger than little Mako-chan! That's freaking adorable!''

''That's not that odd is it? That just means that Haruka-san must be older than Makoto-san.''

''Yeah, but when you see Mako-chan, you wouldn't think that he's younger than Haru-chan, because he's so much bigger.''

''Size doesn't have anything to do with age. For children, yes, but not for adults.''

''Just like I'm older than you, but way smaller and cuter?'' Nagisa teased.

''Well, yes.''

''Oh.'' Nagisa blushed and he averted his eyes.

Rei cleared his throat. ''A-Anyway, shall we continue?''

''Uh, yeah.''

When they turned their attention back to their client, they saw he had won a prize with his shooting skills: a stuffed animal. More specific, a stuffed dolphin, blue and white, looking brand new.

''Is that...''

''The plush dolphin Haru-chan always carried with him.''

''It is.''

''That thing dates all the way back here?''

''It seems so. But Makoto-san won it, didn't he? Why did Haruka-san have it for all these years?''

''Mako-chan must've given it to him! That's so cute! Haru-chan carried it with him because Mako-chan gave it to him!''

''That is quite sentimental, indeed.''

Mrs. Tachibana, Haruka and Makoto left the shooting stand and walked over to another stand. This stand sold a variety of seafood on a stick. Mrs. Tachibana turned to the boys.

''Which one would you like?'' she asked with a smile on her face.

''Mackerel.''Came the immediate reply.

Mrs. Tachibana chuckled and she patted Haruka on the head.

''Silly question, I should have known.'' She turned to her son. ''And which one would you like, sweetie?''

Makoto contemplated his options for a second, a look of concentration on his face as he made his decision. ''Squid.''

''Alright,'' Mrs. Tachibana said and she told the man behind the counter the order. She paid and handed the boys their respective sticks of their chosen food.

''Thanks, Mom!'' Makoto smiled at his mother and Haruka mumbled a small 'thanks' of his own.

''Shall we go sit over there?'' Mrs. Tachibana proposed as she motioned to an empty table.

Makoto and Haruka agreed and they went over to the table, sitting down on the chairs in front of it.

''You're not having any, Mom?'' Makoto asked. ''You can have some of mine!''

''That's okay, dear. I'm fine, but thank you anyway.''

Makoto just shrugged and took another bite when he noticed that Haruka had almost finished his mackerel.

''Whoa, Haru-chan, you really love mackerel, don't you?''

The other boy just nodded as he took the last pieces of fish off the stick with his teeth.

When Makoto finished his squid as well, he turned to his mother.

''Can we go play now?''

''Sure. But stay on the playground, okay?''

''Okay,'' Makoto said as he and Haruka got up and walked away, holding hands.

They were headed towards the playground when Makoto suddenly felt Haru tugging at his hand.

''Haru-chan?'' he questioned, but followed Haruka either way.

''Come.''

''But we promised Mom we'd stay on the playground!'' Makoto tried, but the only reaction he got out of Haruka was the quickening of his pace, and therefore Makoto's pace as Haruka pulled him along.

Haruka led them to a staircase, running up the steps as fast as his short legs could manage. Makoto was still clutching the plush he'd won earlier against his chest with his free hand, struggling to keep up with his friend.

''Wait, Haru-chan, slow down!''

Haruka suddenly ceased running, and as Makoto was trying to catch his breath, he realised they had already reached the top of the stairs.

Haruka walked over to the railing around the edge, intending for Makoto to follow him. Makoto did, of course, and he stared down the cliff. He could see the lights of the carnival reflected in the side of the ocean, and in the middle he saw the full moon, surrounded by stars.

''Wow,'' he sighed in amazement. ''It's beautiful!''

''Mh-hmm.''

Haruka sat down on the little bench that stood a little from the iron railing. Makoto turned his head upwards, so he could see the dark sky illuminated by the stars directly, without the ripples of the sea.

''There are so many stars tonight,'' Makoto said as he plopped down beside his friend, the stuffed dolphin resting in his lap. ''And the moon, too! So big and white. The sky's really pretty.''

''It is.''

''What do you think all those lights really are, Haru-chan? All the stars, I mean. They kind of remind me of birds.''

''Birds?''

''Yeah! Thousands of birds flying through the sky!'' Makoto made big motions with his arms and he suddenly remembered something. ''Haru-chan! You know, my dad told me a story the other day! It was about birds, a thousand of them!''

''A thousand of birds?''

''Yeah. I think the birds he told me about were cranes! Do you know cranes?''

Haruka nodded in response.

''Apparently, if you fold a thousand paper cranes, you can make a wish!''

''A wish?''

''Yeah, and Dad told me that you can wish for anything and then it'll come true!''

''Anything,'' Haruka stated, not really making it sound like a question.

''Anything,'' Makoto confirmed, ''It's said that it can give you a long life, or even cure you when you're really sick!''

Haruka was quiet for a while, thinking over everything he had just been told.

''Why a thousand?''

''Hmm, I don't know. Daddy didn't tell me. I'll make sure to ask him sometime, and then I'll tell you, okay?''

''Okay.''

A comfortable silence settled between them. Makoto was swinging his legs underneath him, hugging the dolphin close, and Haruka was staring upwards, as if he wanted to make sure he'd spare a glance at every single star. Then, Haruka spoke.

''Lighthouses.''

Makoto turned to look at his friend. ''Haru-chan?'' he asked, confused by Haruka's statement.

''I... I always thought they were lighthouses. Billions of lighthouses... stuck at the far end of the sky.''

''Wow, it must be really nice up there!''

''It isn't. They can all see each other, but they're too far apart. They're all alone. And the only thing they can do is shine their lights from afar.''

''That's horrible! Don't they have any friends?''

''No.''

''They must be so lonely! I would be really lonely without Haru-chan,'' Makoto pouted, feeling very sorry for the lighthouses that don't have any friends like he has Haruka. ''But what if we became friends with one of the lighthouses? Then they wouldn't be alone anymore, because they'd have us!''

''Okay. We'll be friends with one of them.''

''I bet they would be so happy to have a friend like you, Haru-chan!''

Haruka tilted his head in question, staring into his friend's green eyes, as if he expected to read the meaning there.

''Haru-chan is the best friend in the whole world, and I'm lucky that you are my best friend!'' Makoto giggled before leaning in and pressing a soft kiss against Haruka's cheek, his lips making a wet smacking sound.

Haruka's eyes widened in shock when he felt his friend's lips against his cheek. He touched the place where Makoto's mouth had been just a few seconds ago with his fingertips, feeling the bit of saliva that Makoto had left there.

''Makoto.''_ It's wet._

Makoto giggled again.

''Sorry, Haru-chan,'' he said before smiling at Haruka.

Haruka blushed a little and averted his eyes, hoping that Makoto wouldn't see the redness of his face. ''It's okay,'' he murmured.

''You're my best friend, too, you know,'' Haruka mumbled so soft that anyone else wouldn't have heard, but Makoto had. Makoto's face flushed as he took in Haruka's words, and a dopey grin stretched across his face.

''We'll be friends forever, right, Haru-chan?''

''Forever...''

''Yeah, we'll always be together, right?''

''Forever,'' Haruka repeated. ''But.''

''But, what?''

''But... What if something happens.''

Haruka had a peculiar way of speaking; stating things rather than asking them, but Makoto understood him either way.

He looked around himself, as if his surroundings would provide him with answers. His eyes found the moon above them and he smiled.

''If something happens,'' Makoto began, ''And we can't be together anymore, then we'll find each other back on the moon.''

''On the moon.''

''On the moon,'' Makoto affirmed.

''The moon,'' Haruka echoed.

''Because, you know, Haru-chan... It's meaningless without you.''

Blood found its way back to Haruka's cheeks and he turned his head away. ''We should go.''

Makoto chuckled. ''Yeah, else Mom might see that we're not at the playground. But, before we head back...''

''Hm?''

Makoto picked up the stuffed dolphin he had won earlier and held it in front of Haruka. ''I want to give you this.''

Haruka stared at the stuffed toy as if it was something he'd never seen before, and he didn't make any indication of acceptance.

''You won it.''

''I know, but I'm giving it to you. I want you to have it.''

''It's yours.''

''It was mine, but it's yours now.''

''Mine,'' Haruka sighed. He took the dolphin out of his friend's hands, accepting the gift and he hugged it close, burying his face in the soft fabric.

''...Thanks,'' he muttered, quiet and shy.

Makoto smiled at Haruka's reaction, closing his eyes and tilting his head a little to the right.

''You're welcome.''

He got off the bench and turned to stand in front of his friend.

''Shall we go, then?'' Makoto asked, offering his hand to Haruka.

Haruka looked up at Makoto and he nodded, a faint smile adorning his face. Anyone else wouldn't have caught it, but Makoto had. He took the offered hand in his and stood up as well, cradling Makoto's gift against his chest as if he never wanted to let it go again.

The two boys walked back towards the stairs, now slowly descending them, their hands firmly entwined.

''If something happens...'' Nagisa remarked.

Rei honestly didn't know what to say to Nagisa at this moment, and therefore he said nothing.

''Is... Is this why he wants to go to the moon?''

''It is.''

''Then, transferring the desire never worked, because they had already found each other back?''

''Yes.''

''But then... That means this desire from his childhood came back to him, because Haru-chan died, and therefore they couldn't be together anymore.''

''It would be safe to assume this, yes.''

''...That's fucked up, Rei-chan.''

''Fucked up?''

''It screws with me, Rei-chan, holy hell!''

''Well, now we also know why Haruka-san always continued to look over Makoto-san. I think that, to him, the death of the twins was 'something that had happened' and therefore he stayed patient. And we know why Haruka-san cherished the stuffed dolphin toy so much. And we know why Haruka-san folded all the origami cranes. Aren't you happy that against all odds, we managed to get to the bottom of this, and discovered everything you questioned before?''

''What does it mean, Rei-chan? What does it mean if we can't accomplish what we were hired for?''

''What are you talking about? We know what it takes to send him to the moon.''

''Yeah, but we're not sending him to the moon.''

''Yes, we are.''

''No, we're not. You are not going to do this.''

''I am. Nagisa-kun, listen. We-''

Nagisa interrupted Rei by sudden shouting. ''You are _not_ going to erase Haru-chan from his life!''


	8. Chapter 8

Rei pinched the bridge of his nose and he sighed. ''Nagisa-kun, I'm not going to erase Haruka-san from Makoto-san's life. That is scientifically impossible and not what we are hired for.''

''But you're going to erase him from Mako-chan's memories. That's basically the same thing! And I don't give a flying fuck about what we're hired for. What does it matter anymore? What difference does it make when Mako-chan can't remember Haru-chan? Haru-chan was the most important person in his life and he loved him so much, and we're not going to ruin that! His life wouldn't be the same without Haru-chan! He was happy! They were happy!'' Nagisa shouted in Rei's face, anger clear in his voice and expression.

''That isn't any of our concern.''

''But it is! Don't you see? Mako-chan's wish isn't going to the moon! His wish is to be together with Haru-chan again! And that's already happening because he's fucking dying right now! He's already fulfilling his own wish and us interfering with that is only going to stop that. Why should we send him to the moon if all we do is remove Haru-chan? He wants to be together with the person he loves and your solution is to erase him from his life? How does that make any sense?'' Nagisa couldn't stop ranting at this point and he yelled out all of his thoughts.

Rei sighed again. I don't have time to explain everything to him, he thought. ''Nagisa-kun, we were hired to send him to the moon and that is final!'' he hissed and then he disappeared.

''GODDAMMIT, REI-CHAN!'' Nagisa cried. ''I'll never forgive you if you pull through with this!''

Nagisa was determined to stop Rei. He sincerely believed that what they were hired for was not always the right thing to do, even if their clients didn't realise it. Makoto hadn't known that going to the moon was symbolic for being reunited with his beloved again, but they had. So why would they fulfill their clients wish when what they really wanted was lost? Rei only cared about fulfilling their tasks rather than fulfilling the actual wishes.

And so Nagisa left as well, following the trail that his partner had left behind.

* * *

Nagisa appeared in the back of Iwatobi High School's cafeteria, next to the table Haruka was seated at.

''Don't worry, Haru-chan,'' he said to the boy, even though he knew it was pointless. ''I'm going to stop him and save you!''

He then ran away, past Makoto and Kisumi's table, to the hallway.

As he turned around the corner, looking for the spot Makoto had asked Haruka to go out with him, he saw Rei.

''STOP!'' he yelled as he was leaning over with his hands on his knees, panting lightly.

Rei ceased walking and turned around, a scowl on his face.

''Nagisa-kun. Look, our contract is to send him to the moon. And the only way for that to happen is if Makoto-san is motivated to do so.''

''But what's the point of going to the moon if Haru-chan's not here? You heard what Mako-chan said! '_It's meaningless without you_'. He said that it would be meaningless without him, and we're taking him away?''

Rei raised his voice. ''I know! But we are legally bound by the contract to specifically-''

''Fuck the contract! I didn't take this job to make him miserable, Rei! I don't know about you, but I signed up help people die happy!''

''So did I. And I'm fond of this job. But if we directly go against our legal obligations, we'd be in for court hearings.''

''We'll appeal! You and I both know that Mako-chan would be way happier to not go to the moon!''

''Makoto-san would be happier with a lot of alternate life tangets, Nagisa-kun. We are not here to play God. Our _job_ is to give him what **he** signed for!''

''We happen to know what he wants better than he does. We can't take away his source of happiness, Rei-chan. Remember what Gou-chan told us? We can't take away his soulmate!''

''Look, I'm only risking to lose Haruka-san because I believe in him, and-''

''What do you mean 'risk'?! You're removing him!''

''Nagisa-kun-''

Rei was interrupted by the ground shaking underneath their feet, and red flashed around them in alarm.

''Crap,'' Rei muttered under his breath. ''We're running out of time!''

Rei took a few steps back. ''Just trust me.'' And in a flash he was gone.

''Yeah? Says someone who doesn't believe in the power of love!''

The floor shook again, startling Nagisa.

''Waaah!''

Slowly his surroundings started to change, and the hallway morphed into a different hallway, the one that led to the cafeteria.

''Fuck. Did you just... Fucking hell, Rei-chan?!''

''I'm sorry, Nagisa-kun, but I need to buy some time. I won't allow you to interfer.'' Rei's voice echoed through the hallway, but Rei was nowhere in sight.

Nagisa took off running, trying to reach the end of the hall.

''This isn't the solution, Rei-chan!'' he cried in desperation.

''Seriously, Nagisa-kun, just stay put and wait until I'm done!''

''Fuck you!''

Rei was honestly shoked by the harsh words that left his otherwise cheerful partner's mouth. He didn't want Nagisa to hate him, he meant too much to him, and therefore Rei didn't say anything in response. He knew that what he was doing hurt him deeply, even if it wasn't something that would normally concern Nagisa, but there was just no other option. He had to do this.

Nagisa ran and ran, his white lab coat fluttering behind him, but there seemed to be no end to this corridor. He cursed some more underneath his breath.

''Look, don't make me exit this whole thing and unplug you, Rei-chan. Because I'll do it!'' he warned and he heard Rei snort in response to his threat.

''Would you really risk disorting his memories as they are?'' Rei asked cynically.

Shit, Nagisa hadn't thought about that, blinded by his fury.

''Just stop trying, please. I promise this won't take long.''

''Ugh...'' Nagisa huffed as he continued running.

''Or, I suppose you can come find me at the end of the hall.''

Nagisa speeded through the corridor and he passed Makoto and Haruka, the latter sitting on the stairs as the former was nervously fumbling in front of him.

Wait, wasn't this the other hall?

He dashed further, knowing he had no time to waste worrying about idle things like this. When he passed the same familiar scene for the umpteenth time, he knew for sure that he was stuck in a limbo Rei created.

''Damn,'' he sighed, ''There's no end to this whole loop.''

He continued making his way through the corridor, now slower than before as his muscles started aching and he was slightly out of breath.

''There has to be a weak point somewhere,'' Nagisa pondered, looking for a fraction of weakness in the artificial memory Rei trapped him in.

After searching for a while, Nagisa thought he had found what he was looking for. To his left he saw that a part of the wall shook a bit, a faint flickering.

''There it is!'' he exclaimed relieved.

He walked over to it and carefully reached out his hand, his fingertips going straight through the bricks. He mentally high-fived himself and he walked out of Rei's illusion.

Back in the original hallway, he saw Rei standing at the end of it.

''Rei-chan!'' he called.

Rei turned around to face him. ''Nagisa-kun.''

''Listen, whatever you've been doing, stop it. We might not know exactly what Mako-chan wants, but we know for sure what he _doesn't_ want! And what he doesn't want is _exactly_ what you're accelerating!''

''It's already done, Nagisa-kun.''

Nagisa came closer, and at the end of the hall he saw Haruka, sitting in the same spot he had in the previous time they visited this memory. Haruka was slowly fading away, and when Nagisa's mind had comprehended what was happening, Haruka was gone.

''What did you do to him?'' Nagisa sneered, his magenta eyes wide with rage.

''Calm down, Nagisa-kun. He is merely going elsewhere.''

Nagisa sighed, not knowing what to say or do.

They saw Makoto passing by, chatting animatedly with Kisumi, seemingly not aware of what he had just lost.

''Come on, Nagisa-kun, we're in the way.''

Nagisa didn't respond. He didn't even look up, he just kept staring at his feet as if he had lost all the hope in the world.

''Now, Nagisa-kun, aren't you excited to see Makoto-san as an astronaut?''

''Not like this.'' The reply came, the tone uncharacteristic and quiet.

''Don't you want to see Makoto-san accomplish his lifelong dream?''

''Not like this,'' Nagisa repeated. ''Never like this.''

''Huh? I always thought this was your favourite part of the job and that you were always looking forward to-''

''What is the point, Rei-chan?!'' Nagisa yelled and he lifted his head to look into Rei's eyes. ''Please explain to me what the point is when he isn't happy!''

''Well, we actually don't know whether he's happy or not, considering we haven't seen him yet.''

''You and I both know his life will never be the same! Not without Haru-chan.''

''...I'm sorry.''

''Let's just go,'' Nagisa spat.

''Right.''

They both left to see the memory Rei created for Makoto.

* * *

Rei and Nagisa appeared in what seemed to be the entrance of NASA. There was a desk standing in the room, a computer on top of it and a woman sitting behind it. Posters of rockets, planets and such hung on the walls and there was a big door next to the desk.

Nagisa looked around himself and sighed again. ''So he actually made it, huh.''

''You sound surprised,'' Rei remarked. ''Whatever happened to 'we always succeed, because we are awesome'?''

''...This isn't a success.''

Rei knew he had accidentally rubbed salt into Nagisa's wounds. He never intended to hurt him like this, and therefore he tried to cheer him up.

''Lighten up a bit, Nagisa-kun. We're in NASA! Didn't you tell me that you wanted to become an astronaut when you were younger?''

''I wanted to become an astronaut to meet cool aliens, not to be ripped apart from my soulmate.''

Rei flinched, realising that he had only made things worse. He pushed his glasses up his nose in habit, and he cleared his throat.

''Uhm... There's not much time left, shall we go take a look around?''

His partner didn't respond verbally, but when Rei walked towards the automatic door, he followed him either way.

They walked through the corridor that took them to the next room. There, they saw a twenty-something Makoto, seemingly very nervous and borderline terrified, talking to someone.

''Please wait here. Someone will come and show you around shortly.''

After Makoto had waited a little while, a man came walking towards him.

''Tachibana Makoto?''

Makoto tensed, the voice startling him. ''Y-Yes?''

The man offered Makoto his hand. ''Welcome to NASA. I'm Ueda and I'm here to show you around.''

Makoto accepted the man's hand and shook it firmly. ''T-Thank you, Ueda-san.''

''Please follow me.''

Ueda took Makoto on a tour through the imaginative NASA, Rei and Nagisa following close behind, and they took the elevator.

First, Ueda showed them a big room with long tables, on top of which stood various computers and other devices. Everything was directed towards a wall full of screens and other monitors.

''This is the mission control center,'' he said. ''There's not much going on right now, but you'll see it alive one day.''

''It's not here,'' Rei muttered under his breath.

''What's not here?''

Before Rei had a chance to respond, Makoto's tour-guide continued to lead them further through NASA.

A floor higher, the man showed Makoto a big machine. There was a pole in the middle and had two ends, both of them holding an oval chamber.

''...And here's the you're lucky, you'll learn to hate it one day.'' Ueda laughed at his own remark. Makoto didn't know why it was so funny, but he didn't want to be rude, so he awkwardly laughed along.

''It's not here either...''

''What are you talking about?''

''Uh, come on. We don't have long left.''

The four of them walked back to the elevator.

Then, Makoto was shown a room with a large window in the middle. Through the window they could see a big shuttle.

''The shuttle's still under heavy maintenance. We may only view it from here for now.''

Rei groaned. ''This can't be right. Perhaps there's somewhere we missed.''

''Rei-chan, I think you need to work on your communication skills.''

''Let's go back down,'' Rei said, completely ignoring his partner's statement.

Back downstairs, Rei and Nagisa entered a room they hadn't been in before. There were a few chairs gathered around a table, one of them occupied.

''I wonder if the real NASA looks anything like this,'' Nagisa spoke.

''I doubt it. It's constructed in part with Makoto-san's beliefs after all. So, probably not.''

''A wiki of existing facts tainted by personal fairytales.''

Rei nodded and Nagisa walked over to one of the windows.

''It's strange, though,'' he said, ''To hear birds and see none.''

Looking around himself, Rei took a few steps forward. He turned around to face the door and he held his breath. When after a few seconds nothing happened, Rei released his breath shakily.

''...I'm sorry, Nagisa-kun.''

Nagisa turned his head towards Rei and looked at him with a bit of confusion in his eyes.

''I really thought there was a good chance,'' Rei sighed.

''...What? Rei-chan, what are you talking about?''

Then, the door opened and Ueda and Makoto walked inside the room. Instictively, Rei stepped backwards.

''And this is the break room,'' he told Makoto. He motioned to the man that was seated at the table. ''This is Koizumi-san, he's a mission specialist.''

Makoto bowed. ''Nice to meet you.''

Nagisa smiled, but it didn't reach his eyes. ''At least Mako-chan got into NASA, I guess. Do you think he made it to the end?''

''Even if he did, it'd take more than just a few years to become an astronaut.''

''Let's hurry up, then. I'd hate to miss the finale.''

Suddenly, they both could hear a loud, thumping sound, as if they had their ears pressed against someone's chest.

''What's going on, Rei-chan? Are we out of time?'' Nagisa asked anxiously.

''I... I don't know.''

Then, the door opened again and inside stepped a young man, smaller than Makoto. His hair was short and inky black, he had a stoic expression on his face, and his eyes were bright and blue.

''Ah,'' Ueda said when he saw the young man, ''And here's our other new recruit. Nanase-kun, right?''

''Yes.''

When Makoto heard that voice, he ceased his small talk with his superior and turned to look at the man that had just entered. His eyes widened and he gasped.

''It's good to have you on board.''

Haruka nodded and he walked over to Makoto. Makoto swallowed audibly, overwhelmed by the gorgeous man standing in front of him.

''H-Hello, I'm Makoto.''

The deadpan expression disappeared from Haruka's face and a small smile painted his features.

''Haru.''

When Makoto heard the gentleness of the other's voice, he smiled as well, tilting his head a little to the side and his eyes crinkled at the corners.

''Oh, thank God,'' Rei uttered. ''For a moment I thought he wasn't going to-''

''What the _fuck_, Rei-chan?!'' Nagisa yelped, ''But.. but you... you deleted him!''

''No, I didn't. I told you I wasn't going to erase him from Makoto-san's life.''

''But-''

''I simply moved him to a different point. What Haruka-san does with his life is still up to him. But this new world... it's based on public data and Makoto-san's own beliefs. And since Haruka-san's data as an individual is not recorded in the public domain...''

''...It all comes from Mako-chan,'' Nagisa said as realisation dawned upon him. ''But even then, all that it does is increase the odds. How were you sure that it would work?''

''I wasn't.''

''Then, why did you- Ugh, it could have gone very badly, you know.''

''You were never one to take risks, were you, Nagisa-kun?''

''Shut up.''

Rei chuckled. ''We still have two spare helmets, right?''

''Yeah. I think Mako-chan would've liked some company.''

They both left.

* * *

Rei got Gou and the doctor hooked up to the system by giving them the remaining helmets and activating them. Meanwhile Nagisa saw short scenes of Makoto and Haruka in their time as recruits.

He saw Haruka walking inside a room, and inside, there was Makoto, sitting behind a grande piano, playing a song that had become all too familiar. A lot of coworkers were watching, and one of them noticed Haruka had walked in, and instead of his usual expressionless face, there was a glimmer of amazement in his eyes.

''Apparently, he wrote it himself,'' the coworker told Haruka. ''A little repetitive if you ask me, but it's okay.''

''What's it called?''

'''To the Moon'.''

Haruka turned back to Makoto and he smiled.

Nagisa saw Haruka and Makoto in the centrifuge and other things needed in training.

Then, he saw Makoto and Haruka at the piano again, seemingly a couple of years older. They were alone now, sitting side by side on the seat as Makoto taught Haruka how to play. The two were sharing an intimate moment, Makoto gently guiding Haruka's hand with his, softly smiling at each other. Their moment was broken when someone suddenly walked inside.

''Ah, there you are!'' the person said as if they had been looking for them. ''You two should go get some rest. Tomorrow's the big day!''

''Thanks, we will,'' Makoto replied. He looked over at Haruka and he smiled, a look of fondness and love in his eyes.

* * *

Morning came and Nagisa appeared on a bridge, surrounded by a lot of people. He knew Rei, Gou and the doctor should be around here somewhere, so he went to look for them.

He saw Rin and Sousuke among the crowd, standing near the railing of the bridge, looking out over the sea and in the distance, the shuttle.

''Did you think they would make it?'' Rin asked.

''Hah,'' Sousuke laughed, ''Did you?''

''Yes I did! I believe in my friends!''

''Yeah, right.''

Rin punched Sousuke's arm, what only caused the other to laugh harder.

''Okay, so maybe I had my doubts, but I never told them that! I always supported them like the awesome friend I am.''

''Whatever you say, Rin.''

Next, Nagisa spotted Gou and the doctor. He walked over to them.

''Hey, Dr. Hazuki, right?'' Gou asked when she saw him.

''Nagisa is fine!''

''Alright. Thank you for letting us in here.''

''You're welcome! It was Rei-chan's idea, either way.''

''Did you find out why he wanted to go to the moon?''

''We did.''

''Well, what happened?''

Nagisa took a glance at the shuttle and smiled to himself. ''Let's just say that everything was worked out thanks to the power of love.''

Gou looked at him, obviously confused. ''The power of love?''

''Yep,'' Nagisa confirmed and he giggled.

''You know,'' the doctor spoke up, ''there were quite a few times last night when I thought we lost Tachibana-san. I think he consciously held on to wait for you two.''

''Mako-chan must have been patient, then,'' Nagisa joked.

''I just hope it's worth the wait. Go on now, your colleague's waiting.'' The doctor pointed at Rei, who was sitting on a piece of the railing.

Nagisa thanked the doctor and went over to Rei.

''I thought this might be a good view,'' Rei said when he sensed Nagisa behind him.

''Good enough to cut off all the traffic, huh?''

''Of course! Beauty must be pursued at any cost, even if the traffic was real.''

Rei turned around to look at Nagisa. ''Well, this is it,'' he spoke, ''All that we have worked for. Ready to initiate?''

''As ready as I'll ever be,'' Nagisa answered and he sat down beside Rei.

Inside of the shuttle were Makoto, Haruka and three other astronauts, all in their respective seats. Makoto and Haruka sat in the back, next to each other. They looked at each other and smiled.

At the control room, everyone got ready for take off. They pushed all the buttons and flipped every switch needed to launch.

The shuttle shook a little before it took off, gaining speed as it shot up higher and higher.

Rei and Nagisa watched along with the others that were gathered on the bridge. Nagisa scooted a little closer to Rei and leaned his head on his shoulder. Rei looked fondly at Nagisa, relieved that the other wasn't mad at him anymore. He wrapped his arm around the other as he stared into the sky, the shuttle long out of sight.

The shuttle had left the earth behind, the sky as dark as the night when they peered out the windows. Haruka looked at Makoto and laid down his hand between them, his palm up in a silent invitation. Makoto beamed at him and he placed his hand on top of Haruka's, intertwining their fingers and he squeezed lightly.

_Beep...Beep...Beep...Beep...Beep...Beep..._

The beeping of the machine Makoto was hooked up to started to slow down, the breaks between the otherwise frequent beeps becoming larger and larger, until the beeping stopped entirely. The faint, dragged out tone that the machine made told that Tachibana Makoto had passed away.

_If you're with me, then everything's alright_

* * *

Epilogue

***approximately a week later***

The sun was slowly sinking behind the sea, and Nagisa was sitting in front of the lighthouse. Next to the rock that read ''In loving memory of Tachibana Haruka'' was now a second rock, identical to the first one. The rock was engraved with ''In loving memory of Tachibana Makoto''.

Nagisa placed a bouquet of flowers in front of the two stones, in the middle were the graves of the two lovers met, reunited once again.

Then, Momotaro and Aiichiro came running in his direction.

''Here he is!'' exclaimed Momotaro.

''Thank you, boys.''

Aiichiro tugged on Momotaro's sleeve. ''Let's go, Momo-kun.''

''Okay. Bye-bye Nagisacchi, bye Reicchi!''

Nagisa and Rei waved as the two children left.

''I still can't believe Makoto-san just willed the house to Gou-san like that.''

''It's not like he had anyone else to give it to.''

''That's true. It's still nice of him, though.''

''Yeah...''

''Is something the matter, Nagisa-kun?''

''It's just...'' Nagisa sighed, ''I still wish we could have ended it differently.''

''Like how?''

''I don't know, cure Haru-chan's illness so he wouldn't have died?''

Rei smiled sympathetically. ''I know you would've liked that, but even if it was possible, we're not that kind of doctors.''

''I know, but still. We also could've prevented the twins from dying. Then they wouldn't have had to separate in the first place.''

''Yes, but eventually either Makoto-san or Haruka-san would've had to die before the other.''

''I guess you're right.''

''And besides, even if these things would have been more satisfying on an emotional level, that wasn't our job. We did what we were supposed to. So it's useless to dwell on what could have been. What's important is that Haruka-san and Makoto-san are together again, whether it is on the moon or somewhere else.''

Nagisa smiled up at Rei. ''Do you finally believe in the power of love? Of real love?''

Rei shot him a look that said 'will you stop about that already', but before he could answer, his phone rang.

''Hello, Ryugazaki speaking,'' Rei said as he picked up. ''...Alright, we're on our way.''

''New patient?'' Nagisa inquired. '

'Yes. Shall we go?''

''Yeah.''

Rei reached out his hand to help Nagisa up, just like Makoto had to Haruka all those years ago. Nagisa accepted Rei's hand, like Haruka had always accepted Makoto's.

When Nagisa got to his feet, they walked away, their hands linked together, and they both looked back once more before they left the lighthouse, the place brimming with forgotten memories behind.

The End


End file.
